Tag: COVID-19

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Episode 17: Scientist at Home: Social distancing without social isolation

In this episode of our Scientists at Home series, Professor Iain Cheeseman (Professor of Biology, MIT and Whitehead Institute) talks about how he adapted to the new normal and juggled his various responsibilities — his family, research group, and undergraduate class. He explains the importance of creating a sense of community while being physically distanced, and some positive changes that the pandemic brought about. You … Continue reading Episode 17: Scientist at Home: Social distancing without social isolation

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Optimal Strategy for a COVID-19 Vaccine Roll-out

by Melis Tekantfigures by Aparna Nathan  The pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2  (SARS-CoV-2) has arguably been the single most devastating global crisis in recent history. As of December 2020, the virus claimed the lives of 1.7 million people, and healthcare systems around the world have been stretched to their limits. Notably, the U.S. has been exceptionally hard hit, … Continue reading Optimal Strategy for a COVID-19 Vaccine Roll-out

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Cancer in the Time of COVID: One oncologist’s look into how the pandemic is impacting the larger medical world

by Paige Haukefigures by Paige Hauke and Catherine Ding As the pandemic rages on and strict social distancing guidelines remain in place for much of the United States, COVID-19, for good reason, takes up most of the medical limelight. But as someone who works at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and walks past our clinical buildings each day, I find myself wondering what this means for other … Continue reading Cancer in the Time of COVID: One oncologist’s look into how the pandemic is impacting the larger medical world

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Racial Disparities in COVID-19

by Wei Lifigures by Olivia Foster Rhoades The United States has the highest number COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with over six million confirmed cases and over 189,000 total deaths in the country as of September 9, 2020. Within the US, the pandemic is impacting racial groups differently, disproportionately affecting Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities. As the country is slowly … Continue reading Racial Disparities in COVID-19

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It’s Worth a Shot: Preventing vaccine-preventable diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic

by Mahaa Ahmedfigures by Tal Scully The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many corners of the world to a standstill. While researchers and scientists race to develop and distribute a vaccine, many places are still subject to a host of restrictions on daily life designed to keep people safe. Unfortunately, this may actually lead to endangerment of children’s health in other critical ways. More than just … Continue reading It’s Worth a Shot: Preventing vaccine-preventable diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic

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An Introduction to Ribosomes: Nature’s busiest molecular machines

by Francesca Tomasifigures by Jovana Andrejevic  Right now, the world is eagerly awaiting clinical trial data for two candidate COVID-19 vaccines known as mRNA vaccines. mRNA stands for “messenger RNA,” referring to the molecule that the vaccine delivers to our bodies. Once the vaccine enters our cells, the mRNA tells them exactly how to build a piece of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The vaccine itself cannot … Continue reading An Introduction to Ribosomes: Nature’s busiest molecular machines

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What Can Evolution Teach us About the Viruses of the Future?

by Sam Berry In 1918, a new influenza (flu) strain infected nearly a third of the world’s population, leaving tens of millions dead. At the time, relatively little was known about this strain, later called the Spanish Flu—why it was so dangerous, how it spread, even what it was made up of. In the past 100 years, we’ve unveiled the structure of the double-helical DNA … Continue reading What Can Evolution Teach us About the Viruses of the Future?

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