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About
about
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Scalable academic capacity
Supporting public health response
/about

Information for the Public.

UK science has been at the forefront of the scientific endeavours to understand the biology of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and to find better ways to treat and prevent COVID-19 disease.

Important UK based research studies have generated critical scientific data that has enabled scientists and doctors to make important discoveries including:

  1. Tracking the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 viruses by sequencing the ‘DNA’ of the virus. This has been done for more than a million COVID-19 cases – and enable scientists to identify emergence and spread of ‘variants’ such as the Alpha, Delta and now Omicron variant.

  2. Understanding COVID-19 disease and then assessing the effects of variants and vaccination on disease severity. This is done by doctors and nurses in intensive care units (ICUs) in hospitals across making detailed records of the clinical characterisation of COVID-19 disease (e.g. patients condition, treatments, progression)

  3. Understanding how differences in people’s DNA can affect if they will develop severe COVID-19 disease. This was done by sequencing the DNA of people who were in intensive care with severe COVID-19 disease. This has identified 23 differences in our DNA that can lead to greater severity, scientists will now use this understanding to develop new treatments for COVID-19.

The findings made by analysing the data from these three studies have all alone brought benefits to public health and patients, including being used by government to help manage the pandemic.

The Outbreak data analysis platform (ODAP) partnership has now been set up by scientists across the UK to bring together the data from these three studies (and others) in a single secure and powerful computer system that will allow scientists to analyse the together all together for the first time.

The data will be held securely and anonymously, and access will be restricted to only accredited scientists who will be able to access and use the data – after going through a ‘five safes’ application process.

The joined-up nature of health care data in the UK National Health Service (NHS) makes the UK one of the very few places in the world were this can be done in big enough numbers to make new discoveries possible. It offers the opportunity for scientists to make new discoveries to help treat COVID-19 patients and to improve the pandemic response.

For the long term - being able to analysis different types of pandemic health care data rapidly in a single location will enable the UK to be better prepared for future pandemics and to routinely conduct infectious disease research (e.g. flu, sepsis and antibiotic resistant bacteria (aka ‘Superbugs’).

  • Accredited researchers
  • High-quality academic research to understand and treat disease
  • Secure data platform {: .ab-mark-text}