The Trump administration has repeatedly imposed budget cuts on scientific research and development, most recently relating to the development of medicine and vaccines for the novel coronavirus. With no proper scientific solution to the virus, many unproven methods against the virus have emerged, as there is little known about the basic biology of the virus.
Professor V. Narry Kim, the director of RNA research at the Institute for Basic Science (IBS), however, has recently been able to pinpoint the exact location of a virus gene that causes the COVID-19 infections. Previously, scientists worldwide have already managed to sequence the virus genome, and found that ten sub-genomic RNAs would exist. Although this research remains an unconfirmed hypothesis, Professor Kim and Assistant Professor Hyesik Chang’s work provided some clarity to the unanswered questions.
Moreover, Professor Kim’s research team generated a high-resolution mapping of the virus which will undoubtedly help in determining the composition of the virus. With this information, her research team will also work to develop a more accurate diagnosis kit and new treatment strategies for COVID-19. Her accomplishment paves the path to finding a vaccine for the virus that has impacted billions worldwide.
From the start of the year, many scientists have continued to conduct research with the goal of finding the sequence of the virus. However, it is not surprising that Professor Kim and her colleagues have been able to make such an accomplishment before any other researchers worldwide. In an interview, Professor Kim claims that they had already been developing multiple methods to analyze RNA sequences before COVID-19 emerged. The 2015 Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak startled Korea, and the development of new-generation sequencing techniques has been in progress since then. Although a different virus, their new techniques could be applied to COVID-19.
Professor Kim has devoted her life to research on the biology of RNAs. She completed her undergraduate studies in Seoul National University (SNU), and continued her graduate studies in the University of Oxford and in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). Now, she teaches and continues her research at SNU. She has received many national awards such as the ASAN Award in Medicine in 2019 and the Scientist of the Year Award in 2016. Her work has also been recognized worldwide; she received the L’Oreal-UNESCO Women in Science Award in 2008. Now, thanks to her recent work on determining the high-resolution RNA mapping of the new coronavirus, there is speculation that she could be nominated for a Nobel Prize.
Professor Kim’s accomplishment in her research on the RNA sequencing of COVID-19 highlights Korea’s research capabilities that are at a considerable level already. Certainly, there is always room for improvement; however, Korean researchers should find pride in Korea’s position in research internationally, and Professor V. Narry Kim may well become a role model.