The Institute is now a member institution of the nation’s Serological Sciences Network (SeroNet) that the NIH has established for the characterization of the humoral immune response in COVID-19. Eight component biomedical research sites were selected to become Serological Sciences Centers of Excellence—making this the largest coordinated effort to study COVID-19 immunity in the U.S.

In collaboration with UNC Chapel Hill and Principal Investigators Shannon M. Wallet and Ralph S. Baric, who will lead the Center, the Institute will employ a set of unique experimental techniques for the molecular identification, relative quantitation, and functional assay of the secreted antibodies (IgG and IgA) which comprise the polyclonal response to SARS-CoV-2. The research shall include an examination of serological antibody repertoires in COVID-19 study subjects as well as in convalescent plasmas obtained from survivors.