COVID-19 News

Banner Image: Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Courtesy National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).

The MCB community is actively working to slow the spread of the SARS CoV-2 virus and end the COVID-19 pandemic by using their scientific expertise and resources to find ways to alleviate the crisis. Many MCB labs have pivoted to SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 research, drawing on their basic research strengths to look for solutions to stop the epidemic. Others have forged new collaborations with colleagues, many across divisions and other departments, inspiring new insights and outcomes. Efforts have also been focused on providing aid to the communities most in need and increasing the public’s awareness and knowledge about the disease.

Below, read more about how MCB is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, organized around the general themes of basic research and collaborations, and public service.

BASIC RESEARCH & COLLABORATIONS	PUBLIC SERVICE
Alumni at Mammoth Bio use their tech against COVID-19 Forbes 3.9.2020	Coronaviruses 101: Focus on Molecular Virology Video lecture 3.25.2020
Using CRISPR proteins as a diagnostic tool Video lecture 3.12.2020	IGI pledge to share COVID-19 IP Innovative Genomics Institute 3.29.2020
UCB PIs organize on social media to help Bay Area efforts to screen for COVID-19 Twitter 3.18.2020	Campus lab pivots from editing DNA to COVID-19 testing Berkeleyside 3.30.2020
Berkeley Conversations: UCB computing and data science in action Berkeley News 4.7.2020	Berkeley Fire Department delivers first COVID-19 samples to the IGI Twitter 4.06.2020
Alumni report on their CRISPR-based SARS-CoV-2 assay test Nature 4.16.2020	MCB labs make hand sanitizer for distribution Berkeley News 4.13.2020
UC researchers switch to SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 research The Daily Californian 4.16.2020	IGI provides COVID-19 illustrations for public use Innovative Genomics Institute 4.23.2020
Blueprint for a pop-up SARS-CoV-2 testing lab Preprint 4.24.2020	Pop-up testing lab shows volunteer spirit against deadly pandemic NIH 5.12.2020
A rapid review of nucleic acid testing approaches for COVID-19 detection Gitlab 4.27.2020	IGI campus lab provides COVID-19 testing to utility workers, underserved Berkeley News 5.13.2020
Big pharma firms collaborate on new coronavirus antivirals Chemical & Engineering News 5.1.2020	MCB undergrads compile COVID-19 resources Magazine 5.18.2020
Robots close California's Coronavirus testing gap Forbes 5.3.2020	Researchers aim to test high-risk groups in CA NY Times 5.18.2020
Researchers are using robotics to expedite COVID-19 testing The Daily Californian 5.3.2020	Campus COVID-19 lab tests ready but the US healthcare system is not NY Times 5.21.2020
Modeling impact of essential workers in the context of social distancing for epidemic control Paper 5.5.2020	Berkeley Conversations: Researchers discuss the science of COVID-19 Berkeley News 6.12.2020
MCB all faculty meeting covers COVID-19 issues MCB website 5.7.2020	Robotic pipeline increases testing capacity Innovative Genomics Institute 6.11.2020
MCB faculty receive COVID-19 research funding CEND 5.14.2020	A visual guide to the SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus Scientific American 6.16.2020
Scientists pivot to COVID-19 research Berkeley News 5.19.2020	Building a COVID-19 pop-up testing lab The CRISPR Journal 6.17.2020
Diane Sawyer talks to scientists in the race for a COVID-19 cure ABC News 5.26.2020	"Liquid Gold": Meet the alchemists of Berkeley California Magazine 6.18.2020
An inexpensive one-step RT-qPCR master mix for detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA Gitlab 5.27.2020	Free Asymptomatic Saliva Testing (FAST) Study for UCB Employees Innovative Genomics Institute 6.22.2020
Blueprint for a pop-up SARS-CoV-2 testing lab Nature Biotechnology 6.18.2020	Slack-integrated lab shifts tool: built by Marqusee lab member, Sophie Shoemaker Github 6.25.2020
Fighting the COVID-19 Pandemic Through Testing HHMI 6.18.2020	How robots help IGI test people for COVID-19 IGI Covid Chronicles 6.26.2020
Cryo-EM structure of the SARS-CoV-2 3a ion channel in lipid nanodiscs bioRxiv Preprint 6.18.2020	IGI COVID-19 testing lab receives astounding volunteer support from local scientists IGI Covid Chronicles 7.3.2020
IGI partners with Salesforce to scale testing operations Salesforce Press Release 6.19.2020	San Quentin prison declined IGI free COVID-19 testing and advice – now there's an outbreak Nature news article 7.7.2020
Bay Area Lab Builds Fast and Secure Way to Share COVID-19 Test Results Salesforce Blog 6.24.2020	Jennifer Doudna: 3 ways science will never be the same after COVID-19 Fortune magazine article 7.7.2020
IGI COVID-19 research projects Innovative Genomics Institute 6.25.2020	Dr. Enrique Lin Shaio of the IGI and Doudna lab talks about testing for COVID-19 This Week In Science video 7.8.2020
Personal take from Jennifer Doudna on COVID-19 Test KQED interview 6.25.2020	San Quentin COVID-19 outbreak could have been prevented: prison officials reject multiple IGI free testing offers KTVU News report 7.22.2020
UC Berkeley launches trial of saliva test for COVID-19 Berkeley News 6.30.2020	Prof. Astar Winoto: Understanding Immune Responses to COVID-19 Universitas Pelita Harapan Guest Lecutre 7.25.2020
The molecular virology of Coronaviruses The Journal of Biological Chemistry 7.13.20	How COVID-19 escapes the immune system IGI Covid Chronicles 8.18.2020
Associate professor Sarah Stanley lights the way to find new drugs for COVID-19 Light the Way Campaign for Berkeley video 7.14.2020	MCB students among active volunteers during pandemic Berkeley News article 8.24.2020
Direct wastewater RNA capture and purification via the "Sewage, Salt, Silica and SARS-CoV-2 (4S)" method protocols.io Open Access 8.3.2020	The Move for Mass Testing of COVID-19 KCBS Radio Ask an Expert series 8.25.2020
Will COVID-19 patients regain their sense of smell? MCB researchers & colleagues work to sniff out the basic biology of the nose National Geographic 8.5.2020	Coronavirus: How It Infects Us and How We Might Stop It Scientific American webinar 8.26.2020
Uncovering how viruses evade cell defenses APS Physics Journal Interview 8.26.2020	Responding to COVID-19 Conversation with Mike Milken Milken Institute interview 8.26.2020
Scientists solve structure of ORF8 in coronavirus protein News Medical article 8.31.2020	Lecture 2, Britt Glaunsinger: "Coronavirus biology" Fall 2020 MIT COVID-19 and the Pandemic undergraduate course 9.8.2020
SARS CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein forms condensates with viral genomic RNA Preprint 9.14.2020	UC Berkeley's Homecoming panel discussion: "UC research should be free to all: Covid-19 shows us why." UC Berkeley Library Panel 10.16.2020
An expert on 'undruggable' targets tackles the coronavirus Berkeley College of Chemistry article 10.5.2020	What Science Has Learned about the Coronavirus One Year On Scientific American Science Sessions podcast 12.11.2020
Looking for hidden states of COVID-19 spike protein The University of Texas at Austin article 10.21.2020	As COVID-19 cases rise, so does mutual aid effort launched at UC Berkeley Berkeley News article 12.15.2020
UC Berkeley launches pop-up lab to monitor Bay Area sewage for COVID-19 Berkeley News article 10.29.2020 Sewage, Salt, Silica and SARS-CoV-2 (4S): An economical kit-free method for direct capture of SARS-CoV-2 RNA from wastewater Preprint 12.3.2020	How does COVID mutate? KCBS Radio ASK AN EXPERT: Dr. Fyodor Urnov 01.08.2021
Nobel Prize-winning technology helps UC Berkeley; UCSF researchers develop faster COVID-19 test The Daily Californian article 11.09.2020 New CRISPR-based COVID-19 test uses smartphone cameras to spot virus RNA Berkeley News article 12.4.2020 Bay Area researchers develop new rapid COVID-19 test that uses smartphone camera ABC 7 News report & article 01.11.2021	'A little bit of everything': UC Berkeley researchers contribute to pandemic understanding The Daily Californian 3.11.2021
Toolbox: Putting Corona on Ice Berkeley Science Review article 11.30.2020	Jennifer Doudna on the Pandemic Year: The Power of Mission-Driven Science The Wall Street Journal 3.18.2021
Robotic RNA extraction for SARS-CoV-2 surveillance using saliva samples medRxiv Preprint 01.11.2021	CRISPR Stops Rare Genetic Disease In New Human Trial Science Friday 8.6.2021
Structure of SARS-CoV-2 ORF8, a rapidly evolving immune evasion protein Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 01.12.2021 The Odd Structure of ORF8: Scientists Map the Coronavirus Protein Linked to Immune Evasion and Disease Severity Berkeley Lab news release 01.12.2021
Can hepatitis C drugs help remdesivir fight COVID-19? Berkeley News article 02.03.2021
CRISPR Breakthroughs for Neurological Disease Innovative Genomics Institute roundtable discussion 04.08.2021
Open-source RNA extraction and RT-qPCR methods for SARS-CoV-2 detection Addgene nonprofit plasmid repository 04.19.2021
Launching a saliva-based SARS-CoV-2 surveillance testing program on a university campus PLoS One 05.26.2021
Screening a Library of FDA-Approved and Bioactive Compounds for Antiviral Activity against SARS-CoV2 American Chemical Society Publications 06.15.2021
The SARS-CoV-2 spike reversibly samples an open-trimer conformation exposing novel epitopes bioRxiv Preprint 07.11.2021
Using two CRISPR enzymes, a COVID diagnostic in only 20 minutes Berkeley News 08.05.2021
Sensitive and multiplexed RNA detection with Cas13 droplets and kinetic barcoding medRxiv Preprint 08.05.2021

Table Images: Artwork adapted from images by Maya Kostman and Philippa Steinberg for the Innovative Genomics Institute.

COVID-19 News

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Contribute to our teaching and research missions.