Fox 19: UC doctor part of team developing new COVID-19 antibody test
Transplant surgeon discusses ‘good’ and ‘bad’ antibodies along with false positives
Steve Woodle, MD, William A. Altemeier Chair in Research Surgery at the UC College of Medicine, is part of a national team working on a new test that can determine the effectiveness of antibodies against COVID-19 and also does a better job of reducing false positives in detecting the novel coronavirus.
“There’s scientific evidence that is accumulating, indicating that some antibodies can be good for you and some antibodies may be bad for you,” Woodle, a UC Health transplant surgeon, told Fox 19. “This test looks at five different types of antibodies and picks out particular combinations that exist in people who get well and people who struggle with recovering from the virus.”
The new test developed by a team of researchers at UC, Emory University and Toronto’s University Health Network along with Thermo Fisher Scientific can reduce the number of false positives for COVID-19, possibly triggered because a patient has antibodies for a common cold.
“No other test has that built into it that’s currently available in the market, but this test brings that,” Woodle told viewers.
Related Stories
Colorado silica dust trial could change the way industry does business
May 17, 2026
Betsy Malloy, Andrew Katsanis Professor of Law, at the University of Cincinnati, spoke with Bloomberg Law about how a Colorado trial could change the way the stone fabrication industry does business.
Driven by curiosity, guided by care
May 14, 2026
Max Wilson, a University of Cincinnati College of Allied Health Sciences health sciences major on the pre-physician assistant track, found his path expanding beyond the classroom and into hands-on research focused on human performance and patient care.
New cohort of nursing students get ready to join co-ops
May 14, 2026
A new chapter is beginning for more than 100 University of Cincinnati College of Nursing rising seniors as they embark on one of the most distinctive experiences in undergraduate nursing education: the UC Nursing Co-op Program. The incoming cohort will fan out across Cincinnati's premier healthcare institutions, stepping into some of the most dynamic and specialized clinical environments in the region. Placement sites include UC Medical Center (UCMC), West Chester Hospital, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC) Burnet, College Hill, and Liberty campus.