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Peter Kolchinsky
@PeterKolchinsky
Managing Partner, RA Capital Management. We build & invest in biotech companies. Scientist. Author, The Great American Drug Deal. amazon.com/dp/1733058915/
Boston, MA
racap.com
Joined May 2019
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Nov 16, 2024
    Heartening to see such insight here on Twitter. Thank you David standing up for the people who do so much good yet who are among the most hated in America. It’s a paradox that needs resolving. The problems can be fixed; let’s not lose sight of the net good… ie this!
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    David Frum
    @davidfrum
    Nov 15, 2024
    One of my best friends in elementary school was a boy named Brian. He vanished from class during our 6th grade year: sick. No, we could not visit, the teacher said. We were encouraged to draw and write cards instead. 1/x
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Apr 6, 2020
    While not technically alive, there's an evil genius to viruses that never ceases to amaze me. It's one reason I became a virologist. A recent Nature paper reveal a remarkable trick SARS-Cov-2 learned that makes it nastier than the first SARS. Both viruses…
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Mar 19, 2020
    I’m a virologist & investor... & I’m hearing people say it’s impossible to make covid vaccine b/c we haven’t been able to make one to any coronaviruses. Not true. We have veterinary vaccines for dog & cow strains. Human one’s not been investment worthy, until now. here’s why...
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Mar 28, 2020
    If you are hearing about #covid19 “reinfections” in Asia, I can offer you my take as a virologist. The best explanation for what we’re seeing is likely due to three things...
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    May 23, 2020
    Viruses are hoody-wearing hackers, but SARS2 is hardly the cleverest. My votes go to HIV, rabies, and herpes. Here are top 10 virus hacks (each a reason I love virology & science in general)... #1) many viruses employ signal jamming, preventing an infected cell from...
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Apr 6, 2020
    Replying to @PeterKolchinsky
    What’s the take-away for all of us? It’s that beating this virus means social distancing & wearing masks even if we think we aren’t infected. Because we might be. The virus might be replicating in our throats without us knowing (that’s its evil plan!), so put up a roadblock.
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Apr 6, 2020
    Replying to @PeterKolchinsky
    These insights come to us thanks to the hard work of researchers in Germany who very carefully studied the replication patterns of SARS-CoV-2 in a small number of patients, measuring everything they could daily over the course of their infections. nature.com/articles/s4158…
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Mar 16, 2020
    I’m a virologist. Public should know covid exposure dose matters. We have to conserve masks for healthcare workers, but masks can help anyone, reducing amount of virus released (even by breathing) or taken in. Immune system is more effective if infection starts w/ low dose. (1/3)
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Mar 28, 2020
    Replying to @PeterKolchinsky
    Covid-19 is a shock to all of us, but that doesn’t mean that it’s likely behaving radically differently from what we know of other viruses, even other coronaviruses. Odds are high there will be a simpler explanation soon if it’s not out there already (please send if you see one).
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Apr 6, 2020
    Replying to @PeterKolchinsky
    So SARS-1 was a comparatively dumb virus. It went straight for the lungs, announced itself before it could spread to others, and so got social distanced into extinction. But SAR-2, the one plaguing us now, is stealthier, spreading first before revealing itself (and causing harm).
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Mar 28, 2020
    Replying to @PeterKolchinsky
    That’s how immunity works. Immunity can fade, but not on the scale on weeks that these reports suggest. Maybe after a year. So for now, these reports of “reinfections” are likely just an artifact of imperfect testing.
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Mar 28, 2020
    Replying to @PeterKolchinsky
    Any responsible coverage of these “reinfection” rumors makes the point that we should not assume that these recovered patients actually were reinfected again or even that the low levels of viral material detected means they are infectious to others.
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Mar 28, 2020
    Replying to @PeterKolchinsky
    1) The patients have likely indeed recovered from their covid infection and are on their way to clearing the virus as their immune system hunts down every infected cell and stray virion. But there are still lingering bits and pieces of the virus around.
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    Peter Kolchinsky
    @PeterKolchinsky
    Apr 6, 2020
    Replying to @PeterKolchinsky
    …attach via their external spike protein to a protein on our cells called ACE2. Think of it as a particular doorknob that the virus knows how to turn. Every virus has a particular type of doorknob that it attaches to and turns so it can enter (infect) a cell.