“The time to prepare for the next pandemic is now.”
Virologist Raoul de Groot is researcher and lecturer on the subject of coronaviruses. De Groot has over 35 years’ experience studying coronaviruses in humans and animals such as cats, cattle and horses.
Unraveling the workings of coronaviruses
Coronaviruses are widespread among humans and animals. When different species come into close contact, some coronaviruses can be transmitted from one species to another, or from animals to humans. In humans, coronaviruses often cause cold-like symptoms.
Some coronaviruses can cause serious and possibly fatal illness in humans. The past twenty years, we have witnessed the outbreak of three deadly coronaviruses: SARS, MERS and SARS-CoV-2. De Groot studies the interaction between viruses and their host, such as the mechanisms which allow coronaviruses to be transmitted to a new host, and evasion strategies used by viruses to bypass the host cells’ defence mechanisms. Understanding the workings of coronaviruses may help to develop effective countermeasures to control infection.
Online pop-up lecture
On 10 March 2020 in an online public lecture (in Dutch), De Groot answered common questions about the new coronavirus, such as: why do new viruses keep developing? How was the new coronavirus able to spread so quickly? What can science do?