WHO launches global network to detect and prevent infectious disease threats

WHO and partners are launching a global network to protect people from the threat of infectious diseases through the power of pathogen genomics. The International Pathogen Surveillance Network (IPSN) provides a platform that connects countries and regions to improve systems for sample collection and analysis, and uses these data to drive and inform public health decision-making. Share more widely.

Pathogen genomics analyzes the genetic code of viruses, bacteria, and other disease-causing organisms to understand their infectivity, lethality, and how they spread. With this information, scientists and public health officials can identify and track diseases, prevent and respond to epidemics as part of a broader disease surveillance system, and develop treatments and vaccines. I can.

With a secretariat hosted by the WHO Pandemic and Epidemic Information Hub, IPSN brings together leading experts in genomics and data analytics from governments, philanthropic foundations, multilateral organizations, civil society, academia and the private sector from around the world. I’m here. The common goal is to detect and respond to disease threats before they become epidemics or pandemics, and to optimize routine disease surveillance.

The goals of this new network are ambitious, but they also have the potential to play an important role in health security by providing all countries with access to genome sequencing and analysis of pathogens as part of their public health systems. Yes,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. . “As the COVID-19 pandemic has shown us clearly, the world is stronger when we unite to fight our common health threats.”

The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has highlighted the critical role pathogen genomics plays in responding to the threat of a pandemic. Without the rapid sequencing of the SARS-COV-2 genome, a vaccine would not have been so effective and would not have been available so quickly. A new, more contagious virus variant could not have been identified so quickly. Genomics is central to effective preparedness and response to epidemics and pandemics, and is part of ongoing surveillance of a wide range of diseases, from food poisoning and influenza to tuberculosis and HIV. For example, its use in monitoring the spread of HIV drug resistance has led to antiretroviral therapy that has saved countless lives.

“As the world works together to combat COVID-19, global collaboration in pathogen genome surveillance is critical,” said Rockefeller Foundation President Dr. Rajiv J. Shah. “With this experience, IPSN will build a powerful platform for partners to share knowledge, tools and practices across sectors and borders to ensure future pandemic prevention and response are both innovative and robust.” .”

Despite the recent expansion of genomics capabilities in countries as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries are using them to collect and analyze samples and drive public health decision-making. There is still a lack of effective systems for using and using data from There is not enough sharing of data, practices and innovations to build a robust global health surveillance architecture. Budgets that allowed for rapid capacity building surged during the pandemic, but are now being cut even in the richest countries.

“Argentina is deeply invested in building its own and others’ capabilities in pathogen genomics,” said Josefina Campos, Director of the National Center for Genomics and Bioinformatics, ANLIS Malbran, Argentina. “Disease knows no borders. A disease threat in one country is a threat to others. We work together with IPSN members to achieve our common goal of preventing disease and saving lives. I look forward to it.”

IPSN addresses these challenges through a global network that connects regional and disease-specific networks to create a collaborative system to better detect, prevent, and respond to disease threats. Members will collaborate in specialized groups focused on specific challenges, with funding through IPSN to scale up ideas and projects in pathogen genomics. By connecting national, regional and broader stakeholders, IPSN helps to advance critical capacity, amplify regional and national voices and strengthen priorities.

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About the launch of IPSN

IPSN will be officially launched on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly in Geneva. The launch event will be held at the Intercontinental He Geneva on May 20, 2023 from 17:00 to 19:30 (CET) and will be open to the media.Please write up to [email protected] for remote link.

Includes the following keynotes:

• Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization.
• Dr. Mike Ryan, Executive Director of the WHO Health Emergency Programme.and
• Dr. Chikwe Ihekwarez, Under-Secretary-General, Pandemic and Epidemic Information Hub, World Health Organization.

There will also be a panel discussion with high-level speakers from member countries and IPSN funders.

• Dame Jenny Harries, UK Health and Safety Commissioner.
• Dr. Jean Kaseya, Director of the African Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
• Dr. Naveen Rao, Senior Vice President, Rockefeller Foundation.
• Dr. Alexander Pym, Director of Infectious Diseases, Wellcome Trust,
• Professor Tulio de Oliveira, Director of the Center for Epidemiology, University of Stellenbosch, South Africa.
• Björn Kümmel, Deputy Head of Global Health, German Federal Ministry of Health,
• Professor Leo Yi Xin, Executive Director of the National Center for Infectious Diseases. Singapore;
• Dr. Mario Moreira, President Fioculus, Brazil.and
• Dr. Josefina Campos, Director, ANLIS Malbran National Center for Genomics and Bioinformatics, Argentina.

The event will be held in a hybrid format, offering IPSN members and a broader audience the opportunity to participate in IPSN and its activities.