COVID-19 Videos
Antibodies, Vaccines and the Current State of COVID-19
An extended conversation between Dr. Eric Topol, Director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, and Professor Dennis Burton, Chair of the Department of Immunology and Microbiology at Scripps Research. Listen as they talk about antibody cocktail treatments, the mystery of “longhaul” COVID-19 symptoms and how close we are to developing a coronavirus vaccine.
PreSCRIPPSion Sound podcast version of the conversation
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Front Row Lecture Series: Designing Universal Vaccines for Influenza and Coronaviruses
As the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic edges up on the onset of flu season, the need for effective vaccines for these viruses and others is abundantly clear. In this Front Row Lecture, Ian Wilson, DPhil, chair of Scripps Research's Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, discusses advances in designing and developing universal vaccines that could either treat or protect people against all strains of a virus. He focuses on progress developing universal vaccines against influenza and how research on flu has paved the way for current efforts to find a pan-coronavirus vaccine.
Up to 45 percent of SARS-CoV-2 Infections May be Asymptomatic, New Analysis Finds
An extraordinary percentage of people infected by the virus behind the ongoing deadly COVID-19 pandemic—up to 45 percent—are people who never show symptoms of the disease, according to the results of a Scripps Research analysis of public datasets on asymptomatic infections.
How We Can Tackle the COVID-19 Crisis Beyond Testing
If you wear a smartwatch or fitness tracker, you can play a role in monitoring the spread of COVID-19 and other viral diseases like the flu. In this Front Row lecture, Eric Topol, MD, and Jennifer Radin, PhD, discuss how they’re calling on the public to share data from wearable devices for a study that’s helping scientists flag the early onset of contagious respiratory illnesses. By harnessing this key data—including heart rates, sleep and activity levels—from hundreds of thousands of individuals, they seek to improve real-time disease surveillance.
Survivors of Coronavirus Infections May Hold the Secret to Stopping COVID-19
Soon after the COVID-19 pandemic reached the United States, a team of Scripps Research scientists began studying blood samples from patients recovering from infection by the novel coronavirus. In this virtual Front Row lecture, Dennis Burton, PhD, shared how he and his collaborators are analyzing COVID-19 survivors' blood for proteins, known as antibodies, that the immune system creates after encountering the virus. Antibodies to the new coronavirus could be used as much-needed therapeutics to COVID-19 or to help design a vaccine to protect against the disease.
Addressing the Coronavirus Challenge
How do scientists create vaccines and drugs against a virus that simply didn’t exist months ago? That’s the challenge that virologist Michael Farzan, PhD, is facing head on—along with his team on the Jupiter, Florida, campus of Scripps Research. In this Front Row lecture, Farzan, a professor and co-chair of the Department of Immunology and Microbiology, shares his early findings on efforts to develop a safe and effective vaccine that triggers antibodies against the novel coronavirus.
Outsmarting Emerging Pathogens in an Interconnected World
Kristian Andersen, PhD, a genomic epidemiologist, was among the first to begin tracing the origins and spread of the novel coronavirus based on public genome sequencing data. In this virtual Front Row lecture, Andersen shares unique insights on how COVID-19 emerged and he explains what has worked (and hasn’t worked) to mitigate the public health crisis. Lessons learned can help us contain the current pandemic and prepare for future outbreaks.
Coronavirus structure may hold key to treatment: Scripps Research COVID-19 updates
Andrew Ward, PhD, a professor of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, revealed the first structure of a human coronavirus spike protein in 2017 from the HKU1 virus, and went on to do the same for SARS and MERS. He and his team are now investigating the structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and working with collaborators to isolate antibodies from patients. They also developed new imaging methods that may work as a diagnostic tool to probe blood samples from those with COVID-19.
Probing coronavirus genetics for new points of attack: Scripps Research COVID-19 updates
One scientist’s inventive tools for repairing toxic RNA now reveal ways to fight pandemic coronaviruses, which store their genetic information in RNA. Scripps Research, Florida chemist Matthew Disney, PhD, takes you inside his lab’s fight against COVID-19.
Antibodies, biologics and the fight against coronavirus: Scripps Research COVID-19 updates
Besides vaccines and antiviral drugs, a group of medicines called biologics offer great potential in the battle against COVID-19. Serum from recovered patients can be used to protect others and also to identify useful antibodies, our immune system’s precision germ-targeting system. In Jupiter, Florida, Scripps Research molecular biologist Christoph Rader, PhD, explains.
How does the coronavirus sicken people? A virologist explains: Scripps Research COVID-19 updates
The pandemic strain of coronavirus infects cells in the lung, leading to an aggressive immune response that can be life-threatening. Virologist Hyeryun Choe, PhD, at Scripps Research, Florida answers common questions about COVID-19.
Using the immune response to develop coronavirus treatments and vaccines: Scripps Research COVID-19 updates
Dennis Burton, PhD, and Thomas Rogers, MD, PhD, are studying the human immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infections and working to identify antibodies that may serve as the basis for vaccines or antiviral therapies. They need volunteers who have recovered from COVID-19 to help with their research. If you are interested in helping, contact Karen Westfall at kwestfall@scripps.edu.
How digital health devices can predict virus outbreaks: Scripps Research COVID-19 updates
A new app-based research program will analyze participants’ wearable health data—including heart rates, sleep and activity levels—to more quickly detect the emergence of influenza, coronavirus and other fast-spreading viral illnesses. Adults who use a smartwatch or activity tracker such as a Fitbit, Apple Watch, Amazfit or Garmin Watch, can join the study and consent to share their data by downloading the MyDataHelps mobile app.
Scripps Research on '60 Minutes'
"60 Minutes" highlights how scientists are using ReFRAME, an extensive library of over 14,000 small-molecule drugs shown to be appropriate for direct use in humans, in the fight against the novel coronavirus, which causes COVID-19. Calibr—the drug development division of Scripps Research—compiled ReFRAME with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Watch the full episode here.
How scientists are confronting coronavirus: Scripps Research COVID-19 updates
Around the world, scientists are sharing data, sharing insights, pushing for the best possible vaccines and medications against COVID-19. Virologist Michael Farzan, PhD, describes the scale of the effort underway at Scripps Research.
Repurposing existing drugs for coronavirus: Scripps Research COVID-19 updates
Calibr, the drug development division of Scripps Research, is leveraging its powerful ReFRAME drug repurposing collection to find anti-viral drugs for those who have been exposed to the novel coronavirus.
Advancing precision medicines to stop cancer, ALS, muscular dystrophy — and now, coronavirus
Chemist Matthew Disney, PhD, delivers the first pandemic edition of the popular Scripps Research Front Row lectures, via webinar. Watch as he describes his unique drug-discovery tools, now revealing new ways of attacking the RNA virus that causes COVID-19. Rather than targeting proteins, as most drugs do, Disney spent a decade developing an effective way to target RNAs involved in genetic diseases like ALS and cancer. That’s proving important as the novel coronavirus spreads globally.