Expert insight from leading scientists at The Pirbright Institute has informed a World Health Organisation (WHO) report calling on researchers and governments to accelerate global research in readiness for the next pandemic.
WHO and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) say research must be expanded to encompass entire families of pathogens that can infect humans – regardless of their perceived pandemic risk.
The approach proposes using prototype pathogens as guides or pathfinders to develop the knowledge base for entire pathogen families.
Two Pirbright specialists, Dr Naomi Forrester-Soto and Dr Dalan Bailey, provided informed evidence for the report which aims to create broadly applicable knowledge, tools and countermeasures that can be rapidly adapted to emerging threats.
Dr Forrester-Soto studies the role of mutations in RNA virus replication and evolution, focusing on how RNA viruses manage mutations and how this leads to virus infection and transmission.
“It was a privilege to chair the Togavirus working group and work with talented scientists from across the world. I really appreciated the approach which was designed to enable us to evaluate the viruses with as little bias as possible.
This has led to a list of pathogens that are considered by the community as high consequence, and will help with the development of countermeasures, and provide templates for countermeasures against those unknown viruses from that might emerge.”
Dr Bailey is a group leader working on the molecular biology of RNA viruses including paramyxoviruses.
“These WHO efforts to prevent Public Health Emergencies of International Concern (PHEICs) are extremely important in shaping the future research environment.
I was part of the Paramyxovirus working group, which again highlighted Nipah virus as our major priority pathogen – a zoonotic virus from Asia. However, I was really encouraged by the WHOs more general conclusions that ‘urged a broader-based approach by researchers and countries with a framework to help steer and coordinate research into entire pathogen families’.
The overall idea is to ‘create generalizable knowledge and tools that can be rapidly adapted to emerging threats’ and I am fully supportive of this approach being applied across virology as we look to bolster our pandemic preparedness.”
The WHO/ CEPI strategy also aims to speed up surveillance and research to understand how pathogens transmit and infect humans and how the immune system responds to them.
Welcoming the report, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, said: “History teaches us that the next pandemic is a matter of when, not if. It also teaches us the importance of science and political resolve in blunting its impact. Advancing our knowledge of the many pathogens that surround us is a global project requiring the participation of scientists from every country.”
Read the full report Pathogens prioritization: a scientific framework for epidemic and pandemic research preparedness.