CZI invests $ 13.6 million in large-scale research collaboration on COVID-19

Reviewed by Emily Henderson, B.Sc.April 29, 2020

Today, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) spends $ 13.6 million among UC San Francisco (UCSF), Stanford University, and the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub (CZ Biohub) to better understand the spread of COVID. Launched large-scale joint research. The entire San Francisco Bay Area.

Over the next nine months, the consortium will support two long-term studies. The first is to sample a large, representative population in the Bay Area, which is important to inform policy decisions on how to safely reactivate the California economy and keep infections low while waiting for a vaccine. Provide the data. The second, focused on Bay Area health workers, will investigate whether and how long the COVID-19 antibody protects individuals from reinfection. This information can be important to protect first-line healthcare professionals around the world.

To re-establish society and maintain the safety of health care workers in the Bay Area, we must first understand the epidemiology of this disease. How much of the population is currently infected with COVID-19? How prevalent is the asymptomatic spread? And how can this information be used to better understand who is still at risk in the future? There is no shortcut to answering these questions-it will require testing, retesting, and the kind of rigorous public health research this program is focused on in California. We are grateful for being able to accelerate this work and work with Stanford University and UCSF (two of the best scientific research institutions in the United States and in the world) to find these answers. “

Dr. Priscillachan, co-founder and co-CEO of CZI

Dr. Mark Gurley of the California Department of Health and Human Services said: “One of the key steps for California to begin gradually resuming its economy is to put an end to community scrutiny, which will continue to guide science. Thank you. Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, UCSF, and Stanford University have added this important data. “

In the first survey, a consortium led by chief investigators Yvonne A. Maldonado (Maryland (Stamford)) and George W. Rutherford (Maryland) (UCSF) sent letters and follow-up calls to residents of the Bay Area. Contact us to apply. A representative sample of approximately 4,000 Bay Area residents. To enroll in this study, participants had previously tested negative for COVID-19 and are now required to have a national installation in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties. Must follow shelter in-place guidelines.

Members of the study cohort will have a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) diagnostic test to determine new infection rates and a serological (“antibody”) test to understand if participants are unknowingly infected. Both will be tested once a month until December 2020 but recovered during a given month. Viral genomes from all positive samples have been sequenced by researchers at the Chanzuckerberg Biohub to identify local chains and infections of the virus from outside the Bay Area, and co-infection with other pathogens plays an important role. Notify if you will fulfill. Overall, the combined data provide important insights into changes in COVID-19 infection rates when the bay area began to function.

The second study is led by infectious disease specialists Dr. Sarah Dornberg (UCSF Health), Dr. Marisa Holber (Stanford Medicine), and Dr. Vivek Jain (MAS) (Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital) -Consortium Investigates the impact of COVID-19 on healthcare systems and their workforce.

Researchers recruit a cohort of approximately 3,500 Bay Area healthcare workers who had previously tested negative for COVID-19 and retest weekly for at least 12 weeks using PCR and serology . The goal is to determine the rate at which healthcare professionals will get COVID-19 with or without symptoms. Healthcare workers found to be seropositive in the recruitment will be followed in parallel until December 2020 to better understand their immunity and potential reinfection. There is currently an important knowledge gap regarding the nature of immunity to COVID-19. This research will help reveal key insights to better protect frontline healthcare workers.

“The knowledge we have gained from these studies is important to understand the impact of COVID-19 on our communities and to protect health workers here and around the world. Managing this crisis.” Stanford President Mark Tessier Lavigne said. “We are proud to work with UCSF and the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, our leading partners in advancing biomedical research to solve some of the world’s toughest challenges.”

UCSF Prime Minister Sam Hogood said: Protect Bay Area health workers and better determine when and how to safely resume the state’s economy. Build a science-based foundation through this new partnership with colleagues at the ChanZuckerberg Initiative, CZ Biohub, and Stanford University A policy that can guide California and the country in the tough months. “

Yvonne Maldonado, Professor of Pediatrics and Health Research and Policy at Stanford Medicine, said: “We want to work with colleagues at the UCSF and Chan Zuckerberg initiatives to learn if the virus spreads in the next few months and if previous infections confer lasting immunity. This knowledge gives us new treatments and new coronavirus prevention options. ”

George Rutherford, Professor of Epidemiology, Preventive Medicine, and Pediatrics at UCSF, said: These data are important to inform reasonable public health practices. “