The new WHO Collaborating Centre for Genomic Surveillance of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) has been officially launched with an event at the Royal Institution in London.
Hosted by the Centre for Genomic Pathogen Surveillance at the Pandemic Sciences Institute, University of Oxford, the Centre will play a critical role in supporting global efforts to expand and standardise genomic surveillance for AMR.
Designated by the World Health Organisation (WHO), this new Collaborating Centre focuses on supporting global efforts to strengthen genomic surveillance of AMR. The Centre will support the development of standardised laboratory protocols, bioinformatics tools, and technical guidance, and will contribute to WHO’s strategic priorities in tackling the growing threat of AMR through enhanced data generation, integration and use.
“Genomic surveillance provides vital insights into how drug-resistant infections spread and evolve”, said Professor David Aanensen of the Pandemic Sciences Institute, Director of the Centre for Genomic Pathogen Surveillance and lead of the new WHO Collaborating Centre. “By working in close partnership with WHO and global collaborators, we can help turn data into action, supporting national and global responses to the growing AMR crisis.”
The WHO AMR Surveillance and Quality Assessment Collaborating Centres Network is a longstanding mechanism through which WHO partners with academic and scientific institutions to support WHO’s efforts on AMR surveillance and quality standards at global, regional and national level. There are 38 Collaborating Centres specifically designated to support WHO’s work on AMR, each designated for a renewable four-year period to provide strategic support in areas ranging from communicable diseases to health systems development.
“WHO is committed to strengthening the use of pathogen genomics to guide public health action”, said Dr Silvia Bertagnolio, Unit Head for Surveillance, Evidence and Laboratory Strengthening in WHO’s AMR Division. “This new Collaborating Centre will support WHO’s efforts to build the technical foundations necessary for countries to generate and interpret genomic data, thereby enhancing routine surveillance of antimicrobial resistance.”
This new Centre joins a growing international network of institutions working to address AMR – one of the most pressing global health challenges of our time. Through research, tool development and technical support, it will contribute to WHO’s broader efforts to ensure that every country can detect, monitor and respond to antimicrobial resistance using the best available science.
The launch event brought together AMR researchers, public health officials and WHO representatives for a half-day programme of presentations, panel discussions and collaborative sessions. Key topics included global priorities for AMR surveillance, the current landscape of WHO Collaborating Centres working on AMR, and the opportunities presented by artificial intelligence and machine learning in interpreting genomic data.