JEDDAH — Scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have released the most up-to-date illustration of the coronavirus ever made, mapping both its external appearance and internal structure.

The visualization was created via a 3D model and combines the latest data on the structure of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is causing the coronavirus pandemic.

Experts at KAUST created the model, hoping it can help create treatments for coronavirus.

Viruses are absolutely tiny, with a generic coronavirus measuring between 120 to 160 nanometers in diameter. That’s hundreds of times smaller than the average bacteria or human red blood cell. As such, visualizations of viruses can often miss out on detail and accuracy. Using their recently developed modeling tool, however, researchers at KAUSTwere able to visualize components in the virus down to just 10 to 100 nanometers in size.

"Our 3D model demonstrates the current state-of-the-art structure of SARS-CoV-2 at the atomistic level and reveals details of the virus that were previously impossible to see, like how we think nucleocapsid proteins form a rope-like structure inside it," Ondrej Strnad, study author and research scientist from KAUST, said in a statement.

Coronaviruses are infamous for their spike protein, the major surface protein that they use to bind to cells and invade. The name "coronavirus" is derived from the Latin word “corona,” which means "crown,” making reference to these crown-like spikes that coat the surface. This new visualization goes a step further than just showing the viruses' surface and attempts to even map the lesser-known innards of the virus.

"Our model shows the complete viral ultrastructure as we know it to date, and not just some arbitrarily placed, incomplete spike proteins on a lipid membrane," said Ngan Nguyen, lead study author and computer science PhD student at KAUST.

"Other available models also don't show the interior of the virus, as its details are not currently known. Scripps Research Institute US provided us with the most likely hypothesis for the structure's interior based on current data. If this hypothesis is proven wrong, then we can easily update the model," Nguyen continued. — Agencies