Coronavirus Reveals Its Atomic Makeup Through Massive Supercomputer Simulation

A digital simulation of the COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein that was run on the Frontera supercomputer at the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC) may provide needed insights for the design of potential vaccines and drugs being developed against the virus. Understanding the structure of the spike protein is crucial because the virus uses this component to infect human cells. Since this simulation provides a level of structural detail beyond that which is achievable by experiment, it promises to help researchers figure out how the virus is able to infect humans so effectively.