University of York

The University of York is an internationally recognised infectious disease research hub, leading global initiatives in understanding, treating, and preventing through vaccination neglected tropical diseases that affect some of the poorest communities in the World. We will contribute our strong expertise in pathology to understand in-depth how coronavirus damages tissues such as lung, heart and kidney and to identify means to stop this.

We will also exploit our expertise in identifying cutting-edge blood markers of immunity to infection (including small nucleic acid molecules called microRNAs, and proteins that help orchestrate inflammation called chemokines), with the intention to develop tests that could be used to predict patient outcomes or explain why some groups are particularly vulnerable to or protected from COVID-19. We will use mathematical models to help interpret this information and add to the emerging picture of the immune response to COVID-19 built through the coordinated effort of the UK-CIC.