COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2 research and activities

In an Ethiopian-German research collaboration, the Tropical Institute at LMU Klinikum München examined blood samples from health workers and urban and rural communities for antibodies. The results, published in the journal "The Lancet Global Health", suggested that the actual prevalence of COVID-19 is significantly higher than previously officially reported figures. The research team therefore recommends a reorientation of the vaccination strategy for Africa. >>

In spring 2020, the Tropical Institute set up a new clinical study center, which ensures the testing of COVID-19 vaccines in vaccination studies, taking infection protection into account. >>

The map of the Bay-VOC-Initiative shows the current SARS-CoV-2 trend of wastewater sites in Bavaria.

The research group led by PD Dr. med. Andreas Wieser developed a wastewater monitoring protocol with cooperation partners, which was implemented from April 2020 and determines the load of SARS-CoV-2 viruses in wastewater at six different locations in the Munich wastewater network on a weekly basis. This enabled the development of the pandemic to be tracked at an early stage >>

Together with cooperation partners and the Bavarian state government, the Tropical Institute launched the "Prospective COVID-19 Cohort Munich" (KoCo19 for short) project in April 2020. For this purpose, up to 3,000 representative households were selected in the Munich area to examine the infection status of the study participants and collect further health information. >>

With which antibody constellations do COVID-19 infections and diseases occur? From what titer are you protected? Are asymptomatic infections possible after vaccination, which can be passed on to people in the vicinity despite the absence of signs of illness? What is the relationship between antibody titres and the risk or severity of disease? These are some of the questions being investigated by the KoCo vaccination study. >>

The KoCo19-Immu study was designed as a follow-up study of the "Prospective COVID-19 Cohort Munich (KoCo19)" cohort. KoCo19-Immu followed the development of antibodies, cellular immunity and the course of SARS-CoV-2 viral load in SARS-CoV-2 infected persons and their household members, starting directly on the day after a positive swab, up to 12 months. The focus here was on describing the course of the disease in outpatients. (see projects, research group PD Dr. Inge Kroidl) >>

The COVID-19 Testing Unit (CTU) at the Munich Tropical Institute was probably the first SARS-CoV-2 testing station in Germany. Since its opening at the beginning of 2020, a total of over 10,000 PCR tests have been carried out under the direction of PD Dr. Günter Fröschl. The approximately one-year operation of the test station ended on March 26, 2021. >>

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Tropical Institute has provided advice and support services in several care facilities for the elderly in the greater Munich area and for the Bavarian State Ministry of Health and Care. The focus: How to organize day-to-day processes and management in such a way that hygiene measures are adhered to and the risk of infection is minimized?

Michael Hoelscher has been a member of an expert council on the pandemic convened by the Bavarian state government since 2020. Christian Janke, MSc, MPH is a member of the Bavarian State Ministry of Health and Care's expert panel on pandemic containment in long-term care as a representative of the department. PD Dr. med. Andreas Wieser is a consultant to the Exceptional Events Unit (SAE) of the City of Munich (SARS-CoV-2 monitoring project in wastewater).

From 2020, the institute created extensive laboratory capacities for COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2 research within a very short space of time. The research infrastructure (see Research) was further expanded and diagnostics in the accredited laboratory area was extended (e.g. antibody determinations against the spike protein, against the nucleocapsid antigen, neutralization surrogate test and ID NOW™ point-of-care nucleic acid amplification technology).

Dr. Camilla Rothe from the Munich Tropical Institute was awarded the Rolf Becker Prize 2021 by the Medical Faculty of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München and the "Rufzeichen Gesundheit!" foundation in Baierbrunn foundation. >>