After isolating (January 29th) and diagnosing (January 30th) the first two cases of COVID-19 in the country (two Chinese tourists that arrived in Rome), researchers at the National Institute for Infectious Diseases (INMI) Spallanzani promptly isolated the viral strain 3 days later (February 2nd).4 The patients were treated with an experimental antiviral, Remdesivir, that is under development for Ebola and Marburg infections. The drug was administered “for compassionate use,” given the current lack of specific authorizations, and the couple was declared officially cured on February 26th. Other clinical isolates from Italian patients have been obtained both at the Luigi Sacco Hospital, which is also a research campus for the University of Milan (Department of Biomedical and Clinical sciences), and at the S. Raffaele Hospital (March 3rd to 4th). These isolates and their genome sequencing are the foundation on which to start our quest for effective drugs and, likely on a longer time frame, vaccines.