Saving lives, locally and globally
THE coronavirus pandemic has brought about unprecedented levels of cross-border cooperation and demonstrated that the same strengths and susceptibilities are shared across the world.
The mission of the University of Dundee is to transform lives, locally and globally through the creation, sharing and application of knowledge. Never has this been more relevant than now as humanity bands together to battle the devastating disease that is Covid-19.
Recognised as one of the best in the UK for medicine and life sciences, Dundee’s internationally renowned researchers have been awarded more than £4mil (RM21.3mil) in funding for studies related to Covid-19, to date.
One such example is STOPCOVID19, the first clinical trial of a Covid-19 drug led by researchers based in Scotland. Researchers from the School of Medicine have partnered with global biopharmaceutical company Insmed Incorporated to conduct trials of brensocatib, a drug being developed to treat lung inflammation in Covid-19 patients.
“The medical community has never faced a more urgent need for treatment than the unprecedented situation we face today,” said Prof James Chalmers, who is leading the study. “Our researchers at the University of Dundee have been studying this kind of lung inflammation for more than 10 years and so, are in the perfect position to rapidly intervene in patients to try to prevent the worst outcomes of Covid-19.”
In another of the dozens of coronavirus-related projects at Dundee, scientists at the University’s School of Life Sciences were the first in the world to identify 38 separate proteins produced by SARSCoV-2 that produce an immune response in the body.
They are now manufacturing these components of the virus to generate antibodies against them, and all of these will be made available to the global research community on an open source basis to enhance efforts to tackle the disease.
The university’s teaching activities are also helping to reinforce care for patients. The Class of 2020 medical students last month graduated early to bolster the ranks of qualified doctors, while nursing students have also volunteered for placements to ease the burden on existing healthcare staff.
School of Medicine dean Prof Rory McCrimmon said, “This is a crisis like we have never seen before, and it requires as much help as we can muster. Their help may be needed urgently and they are now in a position to do that as qualified doctors.”
Willingness to help others at this time of international crisis can be found right across the university and features staff and students from all academic areas.
Hundreds of members of the university community are collaborating with colleagues from universities and other organisations across the world to take the fight to coronavirus, a fight that can only be won by people from Scotland to Malaysia and everywhere in between working together.