The project has started in summer 2022, putting together 8 partners with complementary experience from 5 European countries. This study has already produced first evidence for the induction of a specific protein during COVID-19 disease. Recent data from the consortium has demonstrated that HERV-W envelope protein is highly expressed in lymphocytes of COVID-19 patients and correlates with inflammatory markers and respiratory outcome of the disease, strongly suggesting the role of HERVs in COVID-19 pathogenesis. Plasma and/or sera of COVID-19 patients from different cohorts, infected with successive SARS-CoV-2 variants including the Omicron, had detectable HERV-W ENV, and peaked with the disease severity. HERV-W ENV was also found in post-mortem tissues of lungs, heart, gastrointestinal tract, brain olfactory bulb and nasal mucosa from COVID-19 patients. In addition, the HERVCOV project has started the analysis of patients who suffer from post COVID-19 condition (PCC), known also as Post-acute COVID sequelae (PACS) and more commonly as Long COVID. The first results suggest the presence of HERV-W envelope protein in the serum and plasma of these patients and the study of different other biomarkers specific for this disease is currently ongoing.