How Oxford Medical Sciences is fighting Coronavirus
Researchers from across the Medical Sciences Division are working hard to combat the COVID-19 crises. With particular strengths in infectious diseases and international health, we are well placed to contribute to better understanding and effectively controlling the epidemic. We have a long history of responding to crises, in the UK and around the world and are leaders in emergency vaccine development. During the 2014 Ebola outbreak, our scientists performed the world’s first human Ebola vaccine studies, starting them before any other university or company. Our researchers, in collaboration with partners across the globe, are working to develop an effective vaccine and drugs to target this virus, and have already introduced innovative public health measures and collaborative online tools that are being used in hospitals here and abroad.
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Coronavirus-related news from across the Medical Sciences Division
Oxford researchers honoured by British Society for Immunology
3 December 2021
Four researchers from the University of Oxford have been recognised for their outstanding contributions to immunology with Honorary Lifetime Membership of the British Society for Immunology, with the awards being announced at the recent British Society for Immunology Congress held in Edinburgh.
Medical Sciences researchers scoop 2021 Times Higher Education Awards
2 December 2021
Coronavirus researchers from across Medical Sciences have been honoured at the 2021 Times Higher Education (THE) Awards.
Oxford vaccine reaches two billion dose milestone
16 November 2021
Researchers explain how unprecedented manufacturing strategy provides a template for future global vaccine supply.
Oxford scientists announced as guest Christmas Lecturers
16 November 2021
Two leading scientists from the University of Oxford will join Professor Jonathan Van-Tam at this year’s Christmas Lectures by the Royal Institution.
New advanced analytics research to deliver next level of insights into COVID-19
11 November 2021
Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences (NDORMS) is leading one of nine new studies awarded total of £2m to use large-scale linked data to address priority research questions that will improve understanding of the pandemic and inform the continued policy response.
Researchers uncover gene that doubles risk of death from COVID-19
8 November 2021
Scientists at Oxford University have identified the gene responsible for doubling the risk of respiratory failure from COVID-19. Sixty percent of people with South Asian ancestry carry the high-risk genetic signal, partly explaining the excess deaths seen in some UK communities, and the impact of COVID-19 in the Indian subcontinent.
PTSD in healthcare workers during pandemic could be exacerbated by past trauma
29 October 2021
While some of the high rates of post-traumatic stress (PTSD) seen in healthcare workers during the pandemic are specifically COVID-19-related, a more significant number of cases were linked to trauma that occurred earlier in their lives, researchers at the University of Oxford have found.
Oxford researchers test potential treatment for fatigue in long COVID patients
29 October 2021
Radcliffe Department of Medicine researcher Dr Betty Raman is leading a new phase 2a clinical trial to investigate whether a drug could treat the fatigue and muscle weakness experienced by many patients who have recovered from COVID. The drug, AXA1125, is developed by the US-based biotechnology company Axcella Therapeutics.
Wearing face coverings protected wearers from COVID-19 infection – large scale study
28 October 2021
People who wore face coverings or masks outside of the home, and were more exposed to infection due to their circumstances, had ‘significantly’ lower rates of COVID-19 infection, according to research published in BMJ Open today, led by Oxford’s Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science.
Oxford researchers awarded funding to complete community COVID-19 antiviral trial
26 October 2021
Researchers from the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, have today announced that they have been awarded funding through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) to work with several UK universities and carry out a first-of-its-kind clinical trial, testing novel antiviral COVID-19 treatments for use early on in the illness by people in the community with COVID-19 who are at higher risk of complications.
Find out how other parts of the University are tackling COVID-19
Researchers across the University of Oxford are at the forefront of global efforts to understand COVID-19 and protect our communities.
Support our Research
Find out how to support Oxford's coronavirus work across a number of key research areas.