EMBL’s European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) and collaborators have started developing the European COVID-19 Data Platform, an initiative to help fight the SARS-CoV-2 virus by improving and accelerating the exchange of data among researchers globally.
The world is seeing an unprecedented number of research efforts to help combat the global COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding the biology, epidemiology, transmission, and evolution of the virus puts the scientific community one step closer to creating diagnostics, therapeutics, and effective vaccines. One of the greatest challenges at this stage is finding ways to rapidly access and share data and results.
The European COVID-19 Data Platform aims to address this challenge by providing an open, trusted, and scalable platform where researchers can store and share relevant datasets. It will also create a shared computational space where scientists and public health workers can collaborate. The data platform will be connected to the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC).
The European COVID-19 Data Platform consists of two connected components:
- SARS-CoV-2 Data Hubs, which will organise the flow of sequence data from the outbreak and provide comprehensive open data sharing for the European and global research communities.
- COVID-19 Portal, which will bring together and continuously update relevant COVID-19 datasets and tools.
About EMBL
EMBL is Europe’s flagship laboratory for the life sciences. Established in 1974 as an intergovernmental organisation, EMBL is supported by over 20 member states. EMBL performs fundamental research in molecular biology, studying the story of life. The institute offers services to the scientific community; trains the next generation of scientists and strives to integrate the life sciences across Europe. EMBL is international, innovative and interdisciplinary. Its more than 1700 staff, from over 80 countries, operate across six sites in Barcelona (Spain), Grenoble (France), Hamburg (Germany), Heidelberg (Germany), Hinxton (UK) and Rome (Italy). EMBL scientists work in independent groups and conduct research and offer services in all areas of molecular biology. EMBL research drives the development of new technology and methods in the life sciences. The institute works to transfer this knowledge for the benefit of society.
