Two researchers from McGill University in Montreal are using the Canadian Light Source at the University of Saskatchewan as part of their research in finding a new therapeutic to treat COVID-19. The McGill team which includes doctors Anthony Mittermaier and Nicholas Moitessier has discovered a small molecule that may help combat COVID and could contribute to a new arsenal of treatments slowly making their way to market. Dr. Mittermaier explains what the research team is working on. “What we’re trying to do is find some small molecules that will bind with some enzyme that’s crucial to the function of the virus and block the function of that enzyme so that we can stop the virus from reproducing.”

The researchers say the light source essentially allows them to take a picture of the molecule and how it interacts with the enzyme. Mittermaier says there is a need for therapeutics, in addition to vaccine-related efforts to combat COVID-19.

The doctors say having a therapeutic created by researchers at a Canadian university, the hope is this may make treatment more accessible to Canadians. In January, Pfizer’s COVID-19 pill was approved for use in Canada.