The UK launched a New Variant Assessment Platform on Tuesday, which it says will provide the nation’s world-leading genomics experience to determine new variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 to nations who wouldn’t have the assets to take action.
As a part of the UK’s Presidency of the G7 this 12 months, UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock outlined the plans in a speech on the assume tank Chatham House the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London as he laid out his imaginative and prescient for a stronger, extra collaborative and efficient international well being system, not simply in preventing the COVID-19 pandemic, however to make sure the worldwide group is healthier ready for future threats.
“This pandemic has shown that the foundations of so many of the exciting experiences that make life worth living are contingent not just on our health, or the health of our neighbours, but the health of people we’ve never met. When one of us suffers, we all suffer”, mentioned Hancock.
“So we must work to promote health security in every single part of the world. Not only will this Platform help us better understand this virus and how it spreads, but it will also boost global capability in this important field, so we’re all better prepared for whatever lies ahead”, he mentioned.
Countries will likely be provided UK capability to analyse new strains of the virus by means of the launch of the platform led by Public Health England (PHE), working with NHS Test and Trace and educational companions in addition to the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) SARS-CoV-2 Global Laboratory Working Group. In due course, it will likely be led by the National Institute for Health Protection (NIHP) and can contain PHE laboratories and employees in addition to educational associate capabilities.
Dr Isabel Oliver, Director of Public Health England’s National Infection Service, mentioned: “We know that the virus will evolve over time and certain mutations could potentially cause the virus to spread faster, make people sicker, or possibly affect how well vaccines work. Genomic testing is crucial to our efforts to control the virus it allows us to keep an eye on how the virus is changing and to respond before it’s too late.”
This new initiative will carry Public Health England’s innovative science to nations which have little or no skill to sequence and analyse COVID-19 virus strains themselves. It will even give us essential early warning of latest variants rising around the globe which may endanger the UK.
The platform will likely be working instantly on samples supplied from overseas or will present professional recommendation and assist remotely the place the associate nation already has some capabilities on this space however requests additional help. The provide may embody coaching and assets in addition to personnel and gear.
Countries will have the ability to apply for help by contacting the WHO the place an present channel doesn’t exist already with the UK.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) describes the transfer as important work to fight the unfold of coronavirus by figuring out extra COVID-19 variants around the globe to maintain the worldwide group one step forward of any mutations.
The UK has carried out greater than half of all SARS-CoV-2 genome sequences submitted to the worldwide database, and this functionality helped PHE’s scientists determine the variant in Kent, southern England, informing new measures to sort out the unfold of the virus.
“New variants of coronavirus can be threats to the progress made so far with treatments and vaccines, so it is vital that the global community is able to react to them quickly and decisively”, the DHSC mentioned.
The purpose of the brand new platform is for the UK’s genomic experience to information the worldwide response to controlling the unfold of lethal viruses and saving lives.