New consortium aims to understand principles underlying the formation of coronaviruses
The University of California, Riverside, is the recipient of a 2021 UC Multicampus Research Programs and Initiatives, or MRPI, award allowing the campus to put together a UC Coronavirus Assembly Research Consortium. This consortium will aim to understand the physical principles underlying the formation of coronaviruses, said Roya Zandi, a professor of physics and astronomy at UC Riverside and the principal investigator of the four-year project that received funding of more than $1.75 million. We will also explore the impact of some drugs on the assembly process.
Zandi is an expert on the physics and biophysics principles of virus formation. Her lab researches the statistical mechanics of virus assembly, the dynamics of the self-assembly process, and how various mechanisms can influence the stability of the viral structure.