Fast-moving information on a fast-moving virus
Medical researchers worldwide are racing to find treatments and vaccines to combat the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the globe. A new website offers up-to-date summaries on available and emerging options against COVID-19.
The website, created by medical professionals from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and St Olavs Hospital can be found at: https://sars-coronavirus-2.info/. It will be updated weekly, with a focus on research and development of antiviral options for the disease.
“We made the website in honour of Dr. Li Wenliang, the Chinese doctor who tried to warn us about the coronavirus, and in honour of all the people who have suffered and died because of COVID-19,” said Denis Kainov, an associate professor at NTNU’s Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, who studies treatments for viral diseases.
The target audience for the website is the general public, as well as researchers, clinicians and decision makers, Kainov said.
The website allows interactive exploration of available and emerging options against COVID-19. It is a free tool with a feedback form.
The research network is initially planning on translating the website into Norwegian, Chinese, Spanish, Russian, Finnish, Estonian and Lithuanian. Content will initially be reviewed by Kainov’s colleagues at NTNU and St. Olavs, but the hope is that as time goes on, the network will expand.
“We will ask researchers and clinicians outside of Norway to provide their feedback on the website content,” he said.
Aleksandr Ianevski, a PhD candidate in Kainov’s lab, developed the website. He and Rouan Yao, a master’s student in the lab, will be monitoring research developments and updating the website.
