Germany is carrying out Europe's first large-scale COVID-19 antibody testing to monitor infection rates and help prevent the spread of the virus.
According to the Robert Koch Institute, Germany's federal disease control and prevention agency, the first part of the study is to draw on the country's blood donation services, a second phase will focus on samples from regions with large coronavirus outbreaks and a third stage will consist of a representative study of the country's broader population.
Authorities say they will examine about 5,000 blood samples every 14 days, while regions like Bavaria plan to collect around 3,000 samples from representatively selected households.
