ASHINGTON. As soon as the last line of the article is completed, Ugur Sahin slips the copy of Lancet into his hands and runs to call a friend, a very trusted one because what he is about to say is of vital importance. In the popular science magazine Sahin, a 54-year-old Turkish immunologist has just read about a new virus that has emerged in Wuhan, in the Chinese province of Hubei.
The testimony tells of how the disease has spread among the members of a family of six, but it is far from assuming a contagion at the regional, national or continental level, let alone a pandemic. Sahin reads between the lines and realizes that he is facing not only a planetary phenomenon, but a potentially devastating one. It is mid-January and Covid-19 is still a “segregated” plague in the Chinese orbit by the iron fist of Beijing’s health and political dictatorship. Much of the world is still in the dark. But the regime soon proved powerless in the face of an enemy so perfect, invisible and powerful, to the point of evading the state secret and mercilessly infecting the planet. Sahin senses it: «He understood immediately», a friend of his tells months later.
So the coronavirus kills: a 3D journey in the human body from the infection to what happens to the lungs
–
His is a providential illumination: the Turkish doctor, in addition to being an immunologist, is the “father” of BioNTech, which he founded in 2008 together with his wife and colleague Özlem Türeci, and his former professor Christopher Huber. The same that together with Pfizer worked on the vaccine whose results, disclosed yesterday, proved effective in preventing 90% of infections during phase 3 of the trial. A success (in progress) in which the pair of immunologists played a pioneering role. After the Lancet illumination, Sahin and Türeci send an email to BioNTech’s board of directors, which convenes a meeting at the biotech company’s headquarters in the German city of Mainz. Some objected: “Experts with epidemic experience have said that viruses come and go.” “No, this time it’s different,” replies the couple of immunologists who, confirming their thesis, immediately dedicate more than 400 employees to research on Covid-19. The choice turns out to be decisive and Sahin becomes “the visionary of Covid”, his life will change forever. The Turkish doctor, despite having built companies for two billion dollars (his previous one is with Ganymed Pharmaceuticals), has always worked in confidentiality so as to be unknown outside the academic and biotechnology world.
:quality(85)//cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/infobae/6W7SWGBTFZDL5AAA4MLXTZ4DXU.jpg "New York strengthens the National Guard at airports to control covid-19")
