Khalifa University of Science and Technology on Friday stated that it is leading a team of researchers working with universities across other countries to investigate how the COVID-19 virus - which is usually found in animals such as bats - moved to human beings.

Under the Khalifa University’s ‘COVID-19 Research and Development Task Force’ initiative, the research includes multidisciplinary researchers from various countries including from the UAE, the US, Australia, Singapore, and China. Collaborators from across the Middle East, North America, Europe, South East and North-East Asia, and Australia will facilitate the collection of animal samples for the study.

Dr. Habiba Alsafar, Director at the Centre of Biotechnology and Assistant Professor in Department of Biotechnology at Khalifa University, has highlighted that the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak is an example of zoonosis, which refers to diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans.

Caused by a coronavirus (CoV), the disease is believed to have originated in bats and later it transmitted to humans across the world. In recent history, there have been two major coronavirus outbreaks - the 2002 epidemic caused by SARS-CoV and the 2012 MERS-CoV outbreak. Significantly, both previous coronavirus outbreaks along with the ongoing COVID-19 share a common entry point into the cells of humans and other animals, through a receptor known as ACE2 with the help of another protein known as TMPRSS2.

"These are what the virus sees on the surface of the cell and understanding their similarity across different animals will provide clues on how the virus is transmitted. Other international groups including researchers from other countries have already expressed interest in joining the effort on studying the human and viral elements of the disease. We cannot beat the virus without cooperation as it knows no geographical boundaries," Dr Habiba Alsafar added.

A project titled ‘The identification of conserved groves in the host cell receptors that bind and facilitate coronavirus (CoV) entry into mammalian cells’ conceived by the Khalifa University faculty members is currently under progress. The project aims to understand the commonalities between mammals - from the point of view of cellular receptors that allow or facilitate the virus to enter the host.

Adding to her remarks, Dr Steve Griffiths, Senior Vice-President of Research and Development at the Khalifa University, has stated that the project will help in identifying the cause of COVID-19 transmission from animals to humans, professing the university's commitment to finding a cure to the global healthcare crisis.

"Coming under the framework of Khalifa University’s COVID-19 Research and Development Task Force, this cross-border collaboration brings together the required expertise from renowned academic institutions to directly address scientific uncertainties that surround COVID-19. We believe this research project will provide answers regarding the transmission of coronavirus between humans and animals e while also providing insights that may help limit the transmission of COVID-19," Dr Griffiths added.

Dr Habiba Alsafar is the principal investigator, leading the multidisciplinary team from Khalifa University which also includes Dr Wael Osman (Assistant Professor- Chemistry), Dr Samuel Feng (Assistant Professor-Mathematics), and Dr Herbert Jelinek (Associate Professor-Biomedical Engineering).

The project collaborators consist of Dr Khaled Amiri from the Al Ain University, and Dr Khaled Hazzouri from the UAE University. Till date, international collaborators include researchers from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Science, University of Florida, Murdoch University in Australia and Singapore, and the University of Western Australia.

Reportedly, the team members have expertise in the fields of medicine, bioinformatics, molecular genetics, veterinary science, and epidemiology, as they will provide their knowledge to the project. The study surrounds around epidemiology, comparative genome science, protein modelling and simulation and the expertise of team members will help in identifying the characteristics shared by the mammals that essentially facilitate the transfer of the virus from one species to another.

Khalifa University is well equipped with molecular techniques and analytical tools to carry out the comparative study of mammals. The university has been pursuing related research on multiple fronts. The comparative analysis of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 genes from animals from across the world is an example of the university’s multidisciplinary approach to problem solving.

WAM