NIH’s National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering Move Forward on COVID-19 Testing

Researchers at the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) are moving forward on testing the general population for antibodies to the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The study is being conducted by a division of the National Institute of Health’s (NIH’s) National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which is led by Dr. Anthony Fauci. Researchers are expected to collect samples from up to 10,000 people, primarily through an at-home blood collection kit, with the aim of identifying individuals who already had the infection, quite possibly without ever exhibiting symptoms.

The study is being called “SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic Serosurvey and Blood Sampling.” In a statement, NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci said, “This study will give us a clearer picture of the true magnitude of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States by telling us how many people in different communities have been infected without knowing it, because they had a very mild, undocumented illness or did not access testing while they were sick.”

NIBIB also has two funding opportunities open that specifically relate to COVID-19:

• Development of Biomedical Technologies for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
• Small Business Research and Development of Biomedical Technologies for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

ASME has been supportive of the mission of the NIBIB since its inception in 2001. The division focuses on the development, application, and acceleration of technologies to improve outcomes for a broad range of biomedical applications and health care challenges which are particularly important to ASME. For more information on ASME’s bioengineering policy priorities, read the most recent position paper: Investing in Bioengineering: Securing America’s Leadership Role in a 21st Century Global Economy.