Team finds flawed data in recent study relevant to coronavirus antiviral development

Publication date: Jul 04, 2025

“Now, in a new study published in Cell, Small and colleagues demonstrate exactly why scientists still don’t know how the NiRAN domain works. The findings could have sweeping implications for drug developers already working to design antivirals based on flawed assumptions, and underscore the importance of rigorous validation. But the NiRAN domain can also use a related molecule, GTP, to form a protective cap. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content’s credibility:Detail from Smalls reprocessed cryo-EM data zooming in on an unoccupied area of the SARS-CoV-2 NiRAN domain. He could find no evidence to support the model previously produced by Yan and colleagues. Once the Rockefeller researchers validated their results, they submitted their findings to Cell. “As soon as they published, I went to download their data,” he says. “Efforts based on a flawed structural model could result in years of wasted time and resources.