Course: The Power of Genomics to Understand the COVID-19 Pandemic

Sequencing may appear to be a very challenging in-depth technology, but here we will break it down into steps and discuss the application of each step. All living things have …

The spike protein is a defining characteristic of coronaviruses. Coronaviruses were named after “corona” the Latin word for crown, due to the spikes on the virus surface. The spike protein …

Viruses multiply within host cells – they require the host’s genetic replication machinery to express their own genetic code. Outside the host, viruses can’t multiply – but they can remain …

In week 1, we covered the Great Influenza pandemic of 1918 and what we have learned since. As you will almost certainly have been aware before this course, the current …

Viruses are sub-microscopic infectious agent – much smaller than most bacteria – which infect cells, multiply by using the host’s normal replicative functions and become released from the cell they …

In this week you’ve learned about the origins of the pandemic, what came before COVID-19, a little about PCR testing and sequencing as well as discussing the media approach to …

Glossary of less known terms used in this course Amino acids: the subunit molecules that form proteins Antibody: a protein produced by the host immune system that recognises an antigen …

There are many sequencing technologies used for SARS-CoV-2 (Figure 1). In this step we will approach a broadly used protocol based on viral WGS. The method consists of viral RNA …

In this step we will introduce basic concepts of phylogenetics to better understand SARS-CoV-2 evolution and the emergence of new variants. In biology, evolution is the process of modification and …

Watch Dr Tapfumanei Mashe explain how genomics was used to track and respond to cholera outbreaks in Zimbabwe. Cholera is caused by bacteria, specifically the species: Vibrio cholerae, however many …

SARS-CoV-2 is an RNA virus. RNA can be either single or double stranded and the SARS-CoV-2 genome is composed of single stranded RNA of just under 30,000 bases. Next week …

The table below shows a list of current variants of concern (VOC), variants of interest (VOI) and variants under monitoring (VUM). The World Health Organisation (WHO) classifies variants according to …

Variants of Concern (VOC) and Variants under Investigation (VUI) In the video, you will hear from the Variant Hunters, part of a team of scientists working in the UK’s sequencing …

In this recorded lecture, Teresa explains the differences between the terms: pandemic, epidemic, endemic and outbreak. Each is related to the spread and presence of a disease, but all have …

The SARS-CoV-2 virus spread rapidly across the world, and networks were developed to sequence the virus and track its spread. In this recorded video call, you will hear from experts …