As the coronavirus pandemic surges, infecting tens of thousands in almost every nation on the planet, engineers and scientists across industry and academia have played an integral role in preventing, treating, and testing for the disease. The central objective today is to develop a vaccine. Although researchers around the world are tackling the issue, a solution will take time.
In the race to find a vaccine, fast-paced information gathering has accelerated our understanding of COVID-19. Over the past few months, scientists have determined the virus’ genetic sequence and compared it to other coronaviruses, such as the strain responsible for the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003. Today’s most promising antivirals — including Gilead Sciences’ remdesivir and Emory Univ.’s EIDD-2801 — target COVID-19’s replication mechanism.
Research has shown that COVID-19 enters human cells by binding to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) receptors with its identifying surface spike proteins. Pharmaceutical companies working to develop a vaccine have focused on targeting the ACE-2 receptors and viral spike proteins, among other structural components of the coronavirus.
▲ Jonathan Dordick, a chemical engineer at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), is modifying his viral trap, a DNA nanostructure that can bind to and entrap the Dengue virus, to potentially treat COVID-19. Image courtesy of RPI.
At Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), Jonathan Dordick, a chemical and biological engineering professor, is exploring how drugs such as heparin, an anticoagulant, could help block COVID-19 from binding to ACE-2 receptors by attaching to the spike proteins. The initial results are promising.
He is also expanding his previous research to target COVID-19. CEP’s January 2020 article titled “DNA Star Sensor Detects Dengue Virus” covered Dordick’s novel viral trap — a five-pointed star DNA structure that binds to the dengue virus (DENV) and fluoresces in its presence. The structure mirrors the DENV surface, which has several binding domains arranged in a star-shaped pattern. The RPI engineers used the DNA structure to develop the world’s most-sensitive DENV test. The viral trap not only detected DENV levels, but could also inhibit viral infection by trapping the virus within its unique structure.
Dordick hopes to modify the DNA structure so it can entrap and inhibit COVID-19, or at the very least, serve as the basis for a sensor to detect COVID-19 infection. “The sensor can be tailored to a given virus,” he says. Currently, his team is working on altering the sensor to fluoresce in the presence of the coronavirus, in the hopes that the assay will outperform standard testing.
With a few more tweaks, Dordick and his team could create a platform to capture COVID-19 and slow the spread of the virus. “By changing the DNA structure pattern, you could modify it to bind to the coronavirus’ surface proteins. You’re effectively trapping the virus and preventing it from binding to receptors,” he says. “We used it for DENV, Zika, and influenza.” According to Dordick, this technology could have applications for treating COVID-19.
They are also expanding on research explored in CEP’s December 2019 article titled “Catalyzing the Battle Against Antibiotic Resistance.” In that work, RPI bioengineers used unique, engineered enzymes to destroy infectious bacterial cells. Because the enzymes are modified versions of those self-produced by bacteria, there is less risk of antibiotic resistance. Additionally, these molecules can be incorporated into paints and coatings to create bactericidal surfaces.
Dordick is working on applying this technology to viruses such as COVID-19 by modifying enzymes that target viral components to create protective, disinfecting surfaces. Although the research is still in its early stages, the team’s technologies and tools are general enough that they would be useful for future pandemics. While disease spread on the coronavirus scale is rare, some experts have warned that pandemics often come in waves, with subsequent outbreaks occurring even years after the main event.
“The scientific community has kind of broken the issue into two parts,” says Dordick. “They are advancing solutions by either focusing on existing technology that could be used in short order as a therapeutic or in hospitals, or research that is interesting and exciting but the timeline is much longer.”
Dordick predicts that a COVID-19 vaccine will be ready more quickly than the typical 18 months, but in the meantime, he is focusing on how he can apply his skillset to various issues, and he encourages other engineers and researchers to do the same.
“The science community is already thinking about what they can do, who they can collaborate with,” he says. “If you’re on the therapeutic side, you’re thinking about what you can do to advance treatments. If you’re a mechanical engineer, maybe you have a new opportunity or idea on how to extend the number of ventilators. If you’re a data scientist, you’re working with massive amounts of data and how you can use it to understand more about the disease. We are all asking ourselves the question — What is it we can do, and how quickly can we do it?”
Copyright Permissions
Would you like to reuse content from CEP Magazine? It’s easy to request permission to reuse content. Simply click here to connect instantly to licensing services, where you can choose from a list of options regarding how you would like to reuse the desired content and complete the transaction.
