NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute announced today that its Centre for Genomic Pathogen Surveillance has been selected to house a global health research unit to monitor antibiotic-resistant bacteria across the world.
The initiative is being funded with a £6.8 million ($8.8 million) grant from the UK's National Institute of Health Research. With the money, the research unit will coordinate the activities of national laboratories in the Philippines, India, Nigeria, and Colombia to provide surveillance data for bacterial pathogens using whole-genome sequencing. It will also provide the labs with resources and training in genomic methods to enhance local capacity for spotting and tracking resistant strains.
"Through sampling and sequencing the DNA of resistant and sensitive bacteria within these strategically relevant countries, we will enhance local research capacity while feeding data into national and international surveillance for monitoring and spotting the emergence of resistance," David Aanensen, director of the Centre for Genomic Pathogen Surveillance, said in a statement. "The information from these units will ultimately help to improve the public health response of entire regions."