Long COVID

This sub-project aims to understand why some people develop long-term health problems after COVID-19 and to identify biological markers that can help doctors predict who is most at risk and how to treat them.

COVID-19 has infected over 205 million people worldwide, with increasing evidence that many people do not recover fully after infection.

People who experience ongoing health effects have what is known as Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome (PACS), which can have persistent changes on body chemistry that affects multiple systems after the initial infection.

Current findings from this sub-project's collaborator - the Australian National Phenome Centre - show that COVID-19 can affect the body in widespread ways, producing metabolic patterns similar to those seens in conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, liver dysfunction, neurological disorders, and inflammation.

Although children generally experience milder symptoms during the acute phase of COVID-19, the long-term effects in children are still not well understood and require further study.

Therefore, this sub-project is aiming to reduce the long-term illness and health risks from long COVID (PACS) by identifying the biological changes involved and grouping patients based on their likelihood of recovery, so treatments can be better targeted.

The study aims to:

Measure changes in metabolism, the immune system, and inflammation to better understand how long COVID affects the body.
Use biological and clinical data to establish diagnostic criteria and identify different types of long COVID.
Use data analysis and modelling to identify which patients are most at risk of ongoing illness and how their condition may progress.
Turn research findings into practical tools that help doctors identify patients who may need earlier or more targeted care.
Develop an open-access database that allows researchers to share and analyse metabolic data related to COVID-19.

Investigators

Dr Sam Lodge at the Australian National Phenome Centre
Dr Nina D'Vaz, ORIGINS Biobank Manager at the Kids Research Institute Australia
Prof Julien Wist at the Australian National Phenome Centre
Prof Desiree Silva, ORIGINS Co-Director at The Kids Research Institute Australia
Prof Elaine Holmes at the Australian National Phenome Centre
Jodie Leslie, ORIGINS Research Assistant at The Kids Research Institute Australia
Courtney Kidd, ORIGINS Biobank Coordinator at The Kids Research Institute Australia
Dr Lisa Gibson, ORIGINS Project Manager at The Kids Research Institute Australia
Dr Jackie Davis, ORIGINS Co-Director at The Kids Research Institute Australia

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In partnership with

The Australian National Phenome Centre

About ORIGINS

Local Research. Global Impact.

ORIGINS is the largest study of its kind in Australia, following 10,000 women, their babies, partners, and siblings, from conception into early childhood through a series of biological samples, face-to-face appointments, and online questionnaires.

Its goal is to develop targeted, more effective prevention and intervention strategies that support all families to flourish throughout life.

The unique interventional long-term study is one of the most comprehensive studies of pregnant women and their families in Australia, utilising over 400,000 biological samples and 30 million data points to deliver innovative, accelerated real-world research outcomes that aim to improve the health and families of now and for generations to come.

The research platform is headed by Co-Directors Professor Desiree Silva and Dr Jackie Davis.

ORIGINS received core funding from the WA Child Research Fund, Joondalup Health Campus, the Paul Ramsay Foundation, the Commonwealth Government of Australia through the Channel 7 Telethon Trust, and the Stan Perron Charitable Foundation.