EUR 4 million for UKE-run National Autopsy Network

"The pandemic has impressively demonstrated how important the results of autopsies are for gaining scientific knowledge and providing patients with tailor-made care," said Prof. Dr. Blanche Schwappach-Pignataro, Dean of the Medical Faculty and member of UKE's Board of Directors. NATON will be a nationwide pool of expertise in forensic medicine and pathology for combatting pandemics. "The findings of this centralised research platform will benefit patients and form a valuable basis for dealing with pandemics in future," she added. A total of 33 institutes at German university hospitals and non-university institutions are taking part in the joint project.

"An autopsy offers a unique opportunity to see the effects of a disease on a person's entire body," said Prof. Dr Benjamin Ondruschka, Director of the Institute of Forensic Medicine at UKE and co-ordinator of NATON. The infrastructure of NATON should gather medical-scientific data from autopsies and large amounts of samples, process them adequately and make them available to researchers. The German Registry for COVID-19 Obductions is to serve as the electronic backbone, which is to be expanded to a National Autopsy Registry (NAREG). The register can also be used for cases other than COVID-19, said Prof. Dr. Peter Boor, co-ordinator of NATON at RWTH Aachen University.

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