A SCIENTIFIC breakthrough could bring an end to the cold, after researchers found a way to “jam” the genetic code and stop the virus replicating.
Experts said the discovery – made earlier this year – could allow scientists to design molecules that could “stop the virus in its tracks” – fending off colds and winter vomiting disease.
Scientists from the universities of Leeds and York used a computer-based model to identify a code in the viral genome, which causes rhinoviruses, the most common group of viruses, and the cause of most colds. They said the breakthrough meant that, in future, it could be possible to find a way to jam the messages conveyed by the molecules, stopping the virus functioning before disease even starts.
However, that day could be some time off, with trials on animal viruses required before scientists are able to develop a drug that acts on the signals in the genetic code.
The computer research found a code hidden within the sequence of the ribonucleic acid (RNA) of the virus, according to a report published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.
Peter Stockley, professor of biological chemistry in the University of Leeds’ Faculty of Biological Sciences, who led the study, likened the discovery to an “Enigma machine”.
Dr Roman Tuma, reader in biophysics at the University of Leeds, said: “We have understood for decades that the RNA carries the genetic messages that create viral proteins, but we didn’t know that, hidden within the stream of letters we use to denote the genetic information, is a second code governing virus assembly.” –The Daily Telegraph