At unprecedented speed, scientists are starting experiments, sharing data and revealing the secrets of the pathogen — a race that is made possible by new scientific tools and cultural norms in the face of a public health emergency. Twelve days after the genome was posted, NIH scientists published their first analysis, showing that the coronavirus used the same door to get into human cells as SARS. About 12 hours later, a Chinese team of scientists who had isolated the virus from patients showed, using the actual virus, that the team was correct. Mesecar said the difference in the speed of science would have been almost unthinkable when researchers were working on SARS. When you gain an understanding, you don’t fear something as much — you know how it’s going to operate,” Mesecar said.

Source: Washington Post January 24, 2020 21:18 UTC