WATCH: “As we learn one thing about COVID-19, we have two new questions”

ICYMI: Listen in on a fascinating conversation between the McMaster researcher whose lab isolated the virus and a leading New York Times journalist.

May 8, 2020

Expert Featured In This Story

Karen Mossman
Karen Mossman

Professor

See Profile

The MacTalks series kicked off with Behind the Lab Door, which goes inside the leading-edge research that’s making a difference in the fight against COVID-19.

The inaugural talk featured Karen Mossman, a molecular virologist and McMaster’s acting vice-president, research, and Gretchen Reynolds, a columnist with the New York Times and the first journalist-in-residence for McMaster’s Faculty of Science.

Earlier this year, Mossman and her research team, along with partners at Sunnybrook and the University of Toronto, isolated the new coronavirus, which was an important first step in allowing researchers to develop and test potential treatments and vaccines.

In their conversation, Mossman and Reynolds talked about everything from the urgent race to isolate the virus, what’s standing in the way of a vaccine and how the virus is changing the way scientists work.

A group of five people standing indoors in front of a stone wall and a large black screen. They are dressed in formal and semi-formal attire, including suits, blazers and patterned dresses. Two large balloon arrangements in shades of purple, gold and white are positioned on the left side near a podium. The setting is an event space with bright lighting and glass doors visible in the background.

Donor gift launches initiatives for youth health literacy and injury prevention

The investment supports critical initiatives at the Mary Heersink School of Global Health and Social Medicine aimed at improving the health and well-being of children and youth, especially those from diverse and underserved communities.
Three women stand on stage. The woman in the centre holds an award and a bouquet of flowers.

PhD candidate Jana Radosavljevic is on a mission to make mental health research inclusive

Radosavljevic’s research and work as an advocate for gender equity in STEM has garnered global recognition.
gloved hands hold a cardboard cutout illustration of a brain. The person is also wearing a lab coat, indicating they're a doctor.

Scientists uncover hidden cells fuelling brain cancer — and a drug that could stop them

Scientists from McMaster and the Hospital for Sick Children have uncovered a new way to slow the growth of aggressive glioblastoma, and identified an existing medication that could treat it.