Immunity experts identified steps to expand and improve antibody testing in THE COVID-19 response

, July 6, 2020 /
biovalley,, bio-valleys --More than 300 scientists and clinicians from the federal government, industry and academia published a report on the findings and recommendations of the COVID-19 serology study on the Immunity websiteIn May this year, the group held an online workshop on the role of serological testing in understanding and responding to the PUBLIC health crisis of COVID-19 and on strategies to address key scientific knowledge opportunities and gaps in emerging areasSerology tests for COVID-19 are designed to detect antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19Although this test cannotdiagnoseactive infection, it can indicate SARS-CoV-2 infection that is missed because the infected person has not experienced significant symptoms or has not been testedPicture Source: NIAID
The COVID-19 Serology Research Symposium is an inter-departmental working group of experts conveningconference
stakes from scientists from the U.SDepartment of Health and Human Services, including the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health, and scientists from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Centers for Advanced Biomedical Research and Development, and the Department of DefenseParticipants assessed efforts to better understand the meaning of serological test results, processes and validation test kits, and quantify undetected sars-CoV-2 infection casesparticipants suggested that more research was needed to determine whether and to what extent antibody tests were positive meant that a person could avoid reinfection with SARS-CoV-2Participants stressed that serological testing should not be used as a separate tool to determine the personal safety associated with SARS-CoV-2 exposure until these data were availableResearchers are currently working on human and animal models to better understand SARS-CoV-2 immunity It was noted that such an understanding could help identify the best donors for rehabilitation plasma, which may be used to help treat patients with COVID-19 recalcitrons (BioValleyBioon.com) References: Experts Identify steps to expand and improve antibody tests in COVID-19 response
Andrea M Lerner et al.
The COVID-19 Serology Studies Workshop: The Sanders and Challenges, Immunity (2020) DOI: 10.1016/j.immuni.2020.06.012