Finding new therapies

From his lab at the University of Alberta, Dr. Jiang Yin is using the CLS to find new therapies that will help treat COVID-19. With the help of the CMCF beamline, Yin will analyze the papain-like protease — a protein that the SARS-CoV-2 virus needs to establish a COVID-19 infection. This important protein cuts a long chain of viral proteins into smaller functional parts and is the first protein that the virus makes when it enters our cells. The papain-like protease can also influence our immune response, making it easier for the virus to slip past our immune system.

With the help of other researchers (Drs. Rashmi Panigrahi, Tooba Shamsi, and Pravas Baral in the labs of Profs. Michael James and Mark Glover), Yin is looking for small molecules that could bind to the protease and inhibit its activity. This research can lead to new therapeutics for the disease and help in the global fight against COVID-19.