Outreach and Education

The genome of SARS-CoV-2 is a single strand of RNA encoding a large collection of proteins that are synthesized by the ribosomal machinery after the virus infects a host cell.

The genome sequence of SARS-CoV-2 was made publicly available on January 10, 2020 and on February 5, 2020 the first experimentally determined SARS-CoV-2 structure–the main proteinase–was released into the Protein Data Bank archive. Since then, the number of SARS-COV-2 structures in the PDB has grown exponentially.

A new PDB-101 illustration presents examples of SARS-COV-2 proteins available in the PDB, and models developed based on the genome and other structural information available. In addition, the flyer describes the SARS-CoV-2 life cycle highlighting the role of these proteins in viral infection.

This past summer, four students joined members of the RCSB PDB and the Khare Lab at Rutgers to study protease evolution across all Coronaviridae using bioinformatics tools.

These students were part of RISE at Rutgers, a nationally acclaimed summer research program for outstanding undergraduates from diverse backgrounds. Scholars participate in cutting-edge research in the biological, physical, and social/ behavioral sciences, math, engineering, and exciting interdisciplinary areas under the guidance of carefully matched faculty mentors.

Mickayla Bacorn

Mickayla Bacorn's poster Biochemical analysis and review of the active site evolution of SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses was recognized with a poster prize at ABRCMS. MaryAgnes Balogun also presented her research on Understanding the active site of the SARS-CoV-2 papain-like proteinase (PLPro) at the meeting.

In August, Mickayla and Amy Wu Wu were each recognized with a Pauling Poster Prize at the 2021 American Crystallographic Association virtual meeting.

Undergraduates interested in working with the RCSB PDB should apply to RISE at Rutgers.

PDB-101's image of a respiratory droplet, like the ones thought to transmit SARS-CoV-2, was among the 2021 Winners of FASEB's BioArt Competition in the category of Other Life Science Images Category. FASEB’s BioArt competition shares the beauty and wonder of biological research in the categories of Fluorescence or Electron Microscopy; Other Life Science Images; and Video

This painting shows a cross section through a small respiratory droplet, like the ones that are thought to transmit SARS-CoV-2. The virus is shown in magenta, and the droplet is also filled with molecules that are present in the respiratory tract, including mucins (green), pulmonary surfactant proteins and lipids (blue), and antibodies (tan).

A recent issue of Structural Dynamics contains articles submitted by authors participating in the 2020 American Crystallographic Association annual transactions symposium which focused on new ways to teach the next generation of structural scientists.

Articles include:

• Teaching a large-scale crystallography school with Zoom Webinar (Joseph D. Ferrara, Amanda Cochran, Mark Del Campo, Christian R. Göb, Pierre Le Maguerès, Mathias Meyer, Horst Puschmann, Christian Schürmann, Alexandra Stanley, Paul N. Swepston, Akhilesh Tripathi, Fraser White and Jakub Wojciechowski)
• Molecular storytelling for online structural biology outreach and education (David S. Goodsell, Shuchismita Dutta, Maria Voigt and Christine Zardecki)
• A science education model for large collaborative centers (William J. Bauer and Sarah B. Woodruff)
• Inviting others to life in reciprocal space (Cora Lind)
• X-ray Lite: A 1-credit pass/fail crystallography course (Carla Slebodnick)
• Developing a macromolecular crystallography driven CURE (Krystle J. McLaughlin)
• Transactions from the 70th Annual Meeting of the American Crystallographic Association: Structural Science—New Ways to Teach the Next Generation (Joseph Tanski, Christine Zardecki, Andrey Yakovenko and Cassandra Eagle)

The new Health Focus for the 2022-23 will be Cancer Biology and Therapeutics. PDB-101 will create and highlight educational resources about the topic. Part of the initiative is the Annual Video Challenge for High School Students. In 2022, the students are challenged to tell stories about the Molecular Mechanisms of Cancer.

Videos can be submitted between January 18 and April 25, 2022. The resources for students are available on PDB-101. To receive news and updates about new resources and important dates, please subscribe to the video challenge newsletter.