Mary Wilson
Well-known member
10 January 2023
By Michelle Roberts
Millions of UK Covid test samples will be analysed for other serious respiratory viruses, including flu, in a new disease-tracking project.
The Wellcome Sanger Institute team will run detailed genetic reads on the anonymised nose and throat swabs leftover from the pandemic.
The initiative could be an early warning system, quickly spotting future disease threats, say scientists.
It could also help identify new treatments and ways to stop outbreaks.
If the programme can be scaled up, in a few years the NHS could do these types checks routinely on patients for large-scale surveillance.
In the future, it could scan for certain bacteria and fungal infections too.
The scientists will work with government and public health teams, and all the data will be made freely and publicly available.
... To begin with, the tests will look for eight or nine viral causes of respiratory tract infections - adenovirus, human metapneumovirus (hMPV), influenza A, parainfluenza, RSV, rhinovirus and several common cold coronaviruses (HCoV-229E. HCoV -NL63, HCoV-OC43).
Dr Ewan Harrison, part of the team at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, explained: "We'll use leftover diagnostic samples from Covid testing. We have millions of them. We can use them rather than waste them." ...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-64209168.amp
By Michelle Roberts
Millions of UK Covid test samples will be analysed for other serious respiratory viruses, including flu, in a new disease-tracking project.
The Wellcome Sanger Institute team will run detailed genetic reads on the anonymised nose and throat swabs leftover from the pandemic.
The initiative could be an early warning system, quickly spotting future disease threats, say scientists.
It could also help identify new treatments and ways to stop outbreaks.
If the programme can be scaled up, in a few years the NHS could do these types checks routinely on patients for large-scale surveillance.
In the future, it could scan for certain bacteria and fungal infections too.
The scientists will work with government and public health teams, and all the data will be made freely and publicly available.
... To begin with, the tests will look for eight or nine viral causes of respiratory tract infections - adenovirus, human metapneumovirus (hMPV), influenza A, parainfluenza, RSV, rhinovirus and several common cold coronaviruses (HCoV-229E. HCoV -NL63, HCoV-OC43).
Dr Ewan Harrison, part of the team at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, explained: "We'll use leftover diagnostic samples from Covid testing. We have millions of them. We can use them rather than waste them." ...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-64209168.amp