EU reference laboratory consortium for emerging, rodent-borne and zoonotic viral pathogens

Grant number: 101194810

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Key facts

  • Disease

    N/A

  • Start & end year

    2025
    2031
  • Known Financial Commitments (USD)

    $3,652,241.98
  • Funder

    European Commission
  • Principal Investigator

    SONDEN Klara
  • Research Location

    Sweden
  • Lead Research Institution

    FOLKHALSOMYNDIGHETEN
  • Research Priority Alignment

    N/A
  • Research Category

    Pathogen: natural history, transmission and diagnostics

  • Research Subcategory

    N/A

  • Special Interest Tags

    N/A

  • Study Type

    Not applicable

  • Clinical Trial Details

    N/A

  • Broad Policy Alignment

    Pending

  • Age Group

    Not Applicable

  • Vulnerable Population

    Not applicable

  • Occupations of Interest

    Not applicable

Abstract

Article 15 of the Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 of the European Parliament and of the Council on serious cross-border threats to health and repealing Decision No 1082/2013/EU provides that the Commission may designate EU reference laboratories (EURL) to provide support to national reference laboratories to promote good practice and alignment by Member States on a voluntary basis. For the area emerging, rodent-borne and zoonotic viral pathogens a consortium of national reference laboratories in France (Institute Pasteur), Italy (National Institute for Infectious Diseases "Lazzaro Spallanzani", INMI) Hungary (National Center for Public Health and Pharmacy, NNGyK) have been designated as EURL, coordinated by the Public Health Agency of Sweden (PHAS). This EURL consortium will work in accordance and close communication with ECDC and coordinate with other EURLs as well as relevant external stake holders. Importantly, one of the main objectives of the EURL is to set up and coordinate a network of national reference laboratories for the diseases it has been designated for. Network meetings will be hosted. Within this network, needs of the meber state reference laboratories will be systematically assessed to provide timaly and adequate support within the field of diagnostics. The consortium will provide External Quality Assesement for pathogens where this is not available commercially, reference material for diagnostic tests and provide technical support, eg sharing of protocols. Training and twinning visits will be offered. The EURL will produce, upon request or once per year, technical reports based on literature review, expert opinion and/or network survey related to high-risk viral pathogens as well as on laboratory methodology, capability and capacity related issues using report templates provided by the ECDC. The consortium has three BSL-4 laboratories and is well designated for handling "disease X" ie the occurrence of new or emerging pathogen.