A Global lmmunological Observatory to meet a time of pandemics

Abstract

SARS-CoV-2 presents an unprecedented international challenge, but it will not be the last such threat. Here, we argue that the world needs to be much better prepared to rapidly detect, define and defeat future pandemics. We propose that a Global Immunological Observatory and associated developments in systems immunology, therapeutics and vaccine design should be at the heart of this enterprise.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; epidemiology; global health; global surveillance; human; immunology; inflammation; pandemic; science forum; serology.

Figure 1.. The goals of a Global Immunological Observatory, and the challenges involved in establishing such a body.

(A) The epidemiological process (at its simplest) can be captured as a set of flows from susceptibles (S) to infected individuals (I), which occurs at a rate defined by the numbers of infected individuals and the rate at which they encounter susceptible individuals (a function of human behavior) and then successfully transmit to them – these last two processes are here captured by the parameter $\beta$. Infected individuals may then recover (entering the R class), and may or may not then become susceptible again. Typical surveillance only captures the I class: innovations around a Global Immunological Observatory (GIO) would provide a window onto the 'dark matter' of epidemiology (that is, the S and R classes). (B) Establishing a GIO will involve addressing challenges related to funding and sustainability, global equity and ethics, data dissemination, and intellectual property.