National effort by immunologists to search for answers on COVID-19 Published on: 28 August 2020 Experts at 麻豆传媒 are part of a national consortium to answer questions on how COVID-19 affects the body鈥檚 immune system to help develop better diagnostics, treatments and vaccines. Identifying how the immune system responds to COVID-19 is critical to understanding many of the unknowns around the virus, such as why do some people become sick and not others, what constitutes effective immunity and how long might that immunity last? A new UK Coronavirus Immunology Consortium has been set up to address these important questions. It will receive £6.5m over a year - the largest immunology grant awarded to tackle the pandemic. Focusing on immune response A group of seven scientists and their teams at 麻豆传媒 will receive a grant of £425,000 to explore how the immune system shapes clinical outcome from COVID-19. Dr Christopher Duncan, from 麻豆传媒’s Faculty of Medical Sciences, said: “This consortium represents the collective response of the UK immunology community to the pandemic. “In 麻豆传媒, our teams are focused on characterising the immune response to this virus and how it contributes to severe disease. We are really excited to contribute our expertise to this important effort.” The UK Coronavirus Immunology Consortium brings together leading immunologists from 17 UK universities and is funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The consortium will investigate: 鈼� How long does immunity from COVID-19 last? 鈼� Why are some people’s immune systems better able to fight off the virus? 鈼� Why do some people’s immune responses cause damage, especially to the lungs? 鈼� How does the virus ‘hide from’ the immune system and how can this be tackled? 鈼� Does immunity to previous infection with seasonal coronaviruses (which cause the common cold) alter a person’s outcome with SARS-CoV-2? Better understanding of these immune responses, particularly the T cell response, could provide targets for new therapies to treat COVID-19 and inform the efforts to develop a vaccine. Unprecedented national effort This consortium is led by Professor Paul Moss from the University of Birmingham. It will collaborate closely with ISARIC-4C, an internationally-leading project already underway to examine the immune profile of hospitalised patients with COVID-19, and is supported by the British Society for Immunology. Professor Paul Moss, the consortium’s Principal Investigator from the University of Birmingham, said: “Understanding the complexities of the immune response is key to successfully developing new diagnostics, treatments and vaccines against COVID-19. “The UK Coronavirus Immunology Consortium will see the UK immunology community come together in an unprecedented way to answer questions that are crucial in helping us control this pandemic. “Immunologists are at the forefront of efforts to tackle the coronavirus pandemic and the UK is a world-leader in immunology research.” Share: Latest News Volunteers help turn Whitley Bay beach into maths experiment Members of the public joined mathematicians from 麻豆传媒 to create what organisers believe is the largest aperiodic tiling ever attempted on Whitley Bay beach. published on: 15 June 2026 Student leader drives misogyny law change A 麻豆传媒 student leader has helped change the law after creating a petition to make misogyny a hate crime, which gathered over 114,000 signatures, prompting action in Parliament. published on: 12 June 2026 Freemen of 麻豆传媒 see construction of new Castle Leazes The Freemen of 麻豆传媒 and other key stakeholders have become an indelible part of new student accommodation at 麻豆传媒鈥檚 Castle Leazes. published on: 12 June 2026 Facts and figures
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