A laboratory at the Medical College of Georgia has been selected to be part of a nationwide network looking at current health threats and planning for the future.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has committed $90 million to support the Pathogen Genomics Centers of Excellence Network. The funding comes from $1.7 billion from the American Rescue Plan to support genomic surveillance.
The Georgia Esoteric and Molecular Laboratory at Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University is one of the laboratories included in the network made up of health departments in five states: Georgia, Virginia, Minnesota, Massachusetts and Washington state.
Dr. Ravindra Kolhe, director of the GEM Lab, said this is part of a Congressional mandate given the CDC to prepare for and respond to infectious disease threats.
“This was a pandemic, which nobody was prepared for. We were absolutely taken by it,” he said. “But it has some now collective knowledge, some experience of dealing with all the multiple issues associated with a pandemic response. The overarching goal is to make sure that all the responses are collectively put together, we create a template going forward. So that if something like this exists, again, we are well prepared, and then we know what to do.”
In the news release announcing the network, Dr. Christopher R. Braden, Acting Director, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, said the collaboration with public health and academic partners was a critical component of the response to SARS-CoV-2.
“Building upon that experience by establishing the Pathogen Genomics Centers of Excellence, a collaboration among state health departments and educational institutions, will help us ensure that public health is innovative, robust, and resilient in the future,” he said.
The National Human Genome Research Institute defines genomics as “The study of all of a person’s genes (the genome), including interactions of those genes with each other and with the person’s environment.”
The mandate for the network is to improve study of pathogen genomics, molecular biology and bioinformatics. The goal is to better prevent and respond to microbial threats in public health.
Kolhe said his lab’s selection to join the network gives MCG a seat at the table.
“The strength of the GEM lab is to create new testing protocols, validate them, submit to the FDA, in case of emergency use authorization, creating education because we are medical school, for physicians and stuff like that. So those are some of the responsibilities we have proposed from AU, MCG and the GEM Lab,” he said. “But it is going to take at least a couple of months to get the clarity and details on what is getting funded and how much of the funding will be This is a five-year award, so we will start building from the year one.”
Work done by the participants in the network will determine gaps and opportunities for genomics in the public health care system and implement technologies and applications for use in public health. The network will also prepare for and respond to infectious disease threats.
The agencies selected to participate in the network are:
The Georgia Department of Public Health will partner with six academic institutions: University of Georgia, Georgia Tech Research Institute, Emory University, Augusta University, Georgia State University and the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health will partner with the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard as lead academic partner. Other partners from Massachusetts and Connecticut include Boston University, Mass General Brigham hospital network, Yale University, Fathom Information Design and Theiagen Genomics. In addition, it will serve as lead CoE for education with Harvard Medical School, the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and the Massachusetts Consortium on Pathogen Readiness (MassCPR).
The Minnesota Department of Health will have the University of Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic as primary partners.
The Virginia Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services will partner with the Virginia Department of Health, Virginia Commonwealth University, and the University of Virginia.
The Washington State Department of Health will partner with the University of Washington, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, and the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory as well as with Public Health – Seattle & King County.
Dana Lynn McIntyre is a general assignment reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach her at dana@theaugustapress.com
