"WHY IS IT HARDER TO INFECT THE AIRWAY?
"It probably indicates that we’ve evolved defense mechanisms in the airway to not fall completely prey to coronaviruses. Once the virus gains access, it can distribute and disseminate and go into other organs pretty easily, and then we have big problems. The airway epithelium is the first layer of defense. So, in my mind it speaks to the fact that coronaviruses have been around for a while.
What will you learn from manipulating genes with CRISPR? We can figure out which host proteins the virus really needs, because when we get rid of them with CRISPR, the virus can’t replicate. We can also find what we call restriction factors – host proteins that stop the virus from replicating. When we get rid of them, the virus replicates much more. Finding proteins in both of these groups can help us develop new treatments for COVID-19.
WHAT WOULD BE YOUR IDEAL OUTCOME FROM THE PROJECT?
The ideal outcome would be to find a drug target that is effective against SARS-CoV-2 but also other coronaviruses. The advantage of targeting host factors is that some are likely shared between multiple viruses. Finding those host factors can help in developing pan-antivirals which hopefully will be ready to tackle the next pandemic virus on the horizon."
If a Corona Virus needs our host protein to replicate, that protein must be important for our own human replication. It must serve a purpose! Getting rid of our host proteins in order to block the Virus seems a bit risky unless we fully understand and are convinced that the protein serves no other purpose but as a gateway for the virus.
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