Professor Dr. Charlotte Uetrecht from the University of Siegen is studying the structures of proteins and protein complexes in coronaviruses and noroviruses, and how they change over the viral lifecycle. She is developing a new method to obtain as much information as possible about states of these viral building blocks which only exist briefly.
The resulting in-depth knowledge of the material conversions taking place in the viruses may lead to a new method of attack for antiviral drugs.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Prof. Dr. Charlotte Uetrecht sometimes had to explain at length why it‘s important to study the structure of coronaviruses. Today, explanations are necessary above all for her second research subject, noroviruses. »Noroviruses are highly contagious and cause diarrhea with vomiting. The sickness, often called stomach flu, is a risk above all for people with a weak immune system,« says the professor. She also points out the economic costs of sick leave caused by what many people think of as harmless infections.
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