Basic Biologists Take on SARS-CoV-2: Part 2

In the second episode of our three-part COVID-19 mini-series, B3 hosts Mehdi and Robyn are joined by our guests Gina and Andrew for an exciting discussion about how the virus hijacks host signaling networks. We focus on a new paper from QBI scientists that uses a special systems biology technique to track changes in protein phosphorylation of infected cells, and to identify key regulatory proteins called kinases that manage these intracellular signalling events. You can find the original peer-reviewed journal article that was published in Cell here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0092867420308114 In this episode we talk about the pathways that are activated during infection with SARS-CoV-2, including pathways that lead to a reorganization of cytoskeletal elements that help the cell grow new tentacle-like protrusions, called filopodia, for the virus to escape from. For those who are interested in what this looks like, you can find colored versions of the electron microscopy images from the paper on our website (biologistsbeingbasic.com) or our instagram. If you have any questions or comments you can email us at biologistsbeingbasic@gmail.com or find us on twitter or instagram (@biosbeingbasic).