Disabling a Protein Could Cure Common Cold

Scientists have recently done research that suggest disabling a gene that codes for a protein could cause the development of a cure for the common cold. The problem with the common cold is that it quickly becomes drug resistant since viruses mutate and become drug resistant quickly. They tested that SETD3 was a common protein extracted from infected cells. So they engineered mice that didn't have the protein. After injected with the virus, the mice did not get infected. But removing the gene that produced SETD3 had consequences. SETD3 is involved in muscle contractions, so the mice could not give birth without assistance. Due to this, scientists have started research on a drug that stops the protein from interacting with the virus, but it is still many years off.

In my opinion, this a huge development in the cure for the common cold. I feel it points in the right direction in terms of finding a permanent cure. Obviously, killing the viruses isn't working anymore, so we have to find more intuitive ways to stop infection. I feel this could be the intuition and creativity we need to find a permanent cure.

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/common-cold-virus-disable-protein
https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2019/09/in-human-cells-and-mice-a-cure-for-the-common-cold.html

Deleting the gene for the SETD3 protein could cure the common cold

Deleting the gene for the SETD3 protein could cure the common cold

Many treatments for diseases or illnesses focus on destroying the pathogen at hand. Researchers at

Stanford and the University of California San Francisco focused, rather, on how the human host affects

the actions of a virus. Using CRISPR, the researchers discovered that viruses use the protein SETD3 to

take over a cell. The thought is that removing or preventing synthesis of the gene that codes for SETD3

would stop the actions of the virus. Experimentally, mice were altered to lack the SETD3 gene and did not

get sick when exposed to a virus. The SETD3 protein is definitely an “excellent target” however, the side

effects of removing the protein are still not certain. Problems could and would arise since SETD3 plays a

role in muscle contraction; the mice in question were not able to push their babies out while giving birth.

Personally, I think the new found information is a great research opportunity to advance the medical field,

however, I am skeptical. A method of preventing or creating the common cold (and some greater

infections) would have to be safe enough for the long run.

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/common-cold-virus-disable-protein

Related article: https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/disrupting-host-protein-blocks-enterovirus-infections-mice