en 32695275 <p>Novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), became a global challenge ¹. The disease which emerged in Wuhan, China, late 2019, has affected more than 6 million individuals in almost all countries and regions, leading to death in more than 350,000 only in a 6-month period (Date: June 1st, 2020). It should be mentioned that SARS-CoV-2 is responsible for the 3rd respiratory syndrome, caused by coronaviruses during last two decades, while SARS-CoV and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) were both connected to the emergence of severe respiratory syndromes in 2003 and 2012, respectively ². Meanwhile there is no effective treatment or vaccine for the disease.</p> <p>Although the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 has not been clearly understood yet, it is a large enveloped virus, similar to other coronaviruses, which contains several proteins including M (membrane), S (spike), E (envelope), and N (nucleocapsid), which are good candidates for targeting ³. Among them, S glycoprotein, with two domains of S1 and S2, has been as of interest of recent studies, while it is responsible for invasion and entry into the host cells; the Receptor Binding Domain (RBD) of S1 interacts with Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2) on the cell surface, while the S2 domain is responsible for virus-cell membrane fusion and viral entry with higher affinity ⁴.</p> <p>Considering the fact that the immune system is affected by the SARS-CoV-2, immune-based treatment, including corticosteroids, monoclonal antibodies against pro-inflammatory cytokines, plasma therapy, and intravenous immunoglobulin was practiced in some patients in a few studies ⁵. However, the efforts should not be limited to such treatments, while novel therapeutic approaches could be considered, using medical biotechnology.</p> <p>Such pandemic is complex problem, which needs transdisciplinary studies. The development of medical biotechnology to produce pharmaceutical and diagnostic products is a need, which needs close collaboration with other disciplines ⁶. It should be emphasized that it has been clear that coronaviruses know no borders; therefore borderless solution is needed to fight COVID-19 ⁷^,⁸. It is to be hoped that the lessons we learned from SARS-CoV-2, help us to prevent possible pandemic in the near future.</p> 139 139 https://www.ajmb.org/En/Article.aspx?id=30422 https://www.ajmb.org/PDF/En/FullText/30422.pdf NimaRezaei186