{"id":10788,"date":"2020-06-11T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-06-11T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/?p=10788"},"modified":"2020-06-11T09:17:56","modified_gmt":"2020-06-11T13:17:56","slug":"opinion-intercepting-pandemics-through-genomics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/opinion-intercepting-pandemics-through-genomics\/","title":{"rendered":"Initiatives to Intercept Pandemics Through Genomics"},"content":{"rendered":"\n[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.22.7″ custom_padding=”0px||0px|||”][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_2,1_2″ use_custom_gutter=”on” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” _builder_version=”4.4.8″ background_color=”#141418″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” background_color_gradient_start=”rgba(20,20,24,0.71)” background_color_gradient_end=”rgba(0,0,0,0)” background_color_gradient_direction=”90deg” background_color_gradient_end_position=”72%” background_color_gradient_overlays_image=”on” background_image=”https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/F1.large_.jpg” height=”444px” custom_padding=”|||100px” custom_padding_tablet=”|30px||30px” custom_padding_phone=””][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.4.8″ _dynamic_attributes=”content” text_font=”Oswald|||on|||||” text_text_color=”#ffffff” text_font_size=”29px” text_line_height=”1.3em” header_font=”||||||||”]@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90aXRsZSIsInNldHRpbmdzIjp7ImJlZm9yZSI6IiIsImFmdGVyIjoiIn19@[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.27.4″ _dynamic_attributes=”content”]@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9jYXRlZ29yaWVzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6ImNhdGVnb3J5In19@[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.4.8″ custom_margin=”-60px|5px|||false|false”]
Image credit: Paul Beales\/UK Crown Copyright (Left)
\u00a9 Bioimaging at The Pirbright Institute (Right)<\/span><\/h6>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.22.3″ custom_padding=”3px|0px|0px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”31px|0px|0|0px|false|false”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.0.9″ _dynamic_attributes=”content” text_font=”||on||||||” text_text_color=”#646564″ min_height=”60px” custom_padding=”20px||”]@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9kYXRlIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJkYXRlX2Zvcm1hdCI6ImRlZmF1bHQiLCJjdXN0b21fZGF0ZV9mb3JtYXQiOiIifX0=@[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.4.8″ custom_padding=”0px|0px|60px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.4.8″ text_font=”||||||||” custom_margin=”29px|||||” custom_padding=”0px||0px|||” text_font_size_tablet=”” text_font_size_phone=”16px” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone”]

BIOSCAN, Earth BioGenome Project, and Global Virome Project Propose Pandemic Interception System<\/em><\/p>\n

Three major initiatives in biodiversity genomics – BIOSCAN, Earth BioGenome Project (EBP), and Global Virome Project (GVP) join forces to deliver a \u201cpandemic interception system\u201d based upon comprehensive knowledge of pathogens and their hosts, explains a recent commentary in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cCOVID-19 has made it perfectly clear that we need anticipatory rather than reactive systems to protect humanity from pandemics,\u201d said Paul Hebert, chair of the International Barcode of Life Consortium that leads BIOSCAN and director of the Centre for Biodiversity Genomics at the University of Guelph. \u201cIn fact, this survey of pathogenic agents needs to extend across all domains of life so that we can protect planetary biodiversity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Such a system could hugely advance understanding of the natural world, the authors write.<\/p>\n

\u201cCOVID-19 and other diseases such as Ebola, MERS, and SARS have shown the devastating health effects of zoonotic viruses on humanity,\u201d said Jonna Mazet of GVP\u2019s Board of Directors and executive director of the One Health Institute at the University of California, Davis. \u201cOther species experience similar devastating epidemics and are both sources of and sensitive to shared pathogens.\u201d<\/p>\n

John Kress, Co-Chair of EBP and Distinguished Scientist and Curator Emeritus at the Smithsonian\u2019s National Museum of Natural History emphasizes the insights that will result from genomic characterization of the pathogens and their hosts. \u201cInteractions among species drive the functioning of ecosystems. Genomic information on these species-species relationships will build our understanding of not only how pandemics arise and spread, but how our natural systems work for the benefit of the planet and human societies,\u201d said Kress.<\/p>\n

The authors note that advances in technology and the pandemic-driven imperative to collaborate across disciplines have made it possible to construct such a pathogen interception system. BIOSCAN<\/a> is leading the effort to inventory all species and to disclose their interactions. EBP<\/a> is in the midst of assembling a complete genome sequence for every plant, animal, and fungal species on the planet, while GVP<\/a> is bringing together the global network of motivated health, conservation and analytical scientists and policy makers needed to discover the world\u2019s zoonotic viruses and assess them for spillover risks.<\/p>\n

Aside from enabling a surveillance system that supports preemptive strikes and rapid response to outbreaks, the BIOSCAN, EBP, and GVP alliance could further aid in early response, development of diagnostic pipelines and vaccines.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith investments totaling a tiny fraction of the costs involved in mitigating the impacts of COVID-19, these programs would lead us on a path that will ensure it is the last global pandemic,\u201d Kress said.<\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.22.3″ custom_padding=”0px|||||”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.25″ background_color=”#a8d367″ custom_padding=”67px|0px|0|0px|false|false” border_style_top=”double”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.27.4″ text_font=”||||||||” text_orientation=”center” text_font_size_tablet=”” text_font_size_phone=”16px” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|desktop”]

Media Contacts: <\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_3,1_3,1_3″ custom_padding_last_edited=”on|phone” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_color=”#a8d367″ custom_padding=”0px||” custom_padding_tablet=”8px|||0px” custom_padding_phone=”0px|||0px”][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.4.8″ text_font=”Abel||||||||” link_font=”||||||||” link_text_color=”#646564″ header_font=”||||||||” text_orientation=”center” module_alignment=”right” custom_padding_tablet=”” custom_padding_phone=”20px||” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|phone”]

International Barcode of Life\u00a0<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Hannah James<\/strong>
Manager –\u00a0Media and Strategic Communications
hjames@ibol.org<\/a><\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.4.8″ text_font=”Abel||||||||” link_font=”||||||||” link_text_color=”#646564″ text_orientation=”center”]

Global Virome Project<\/strong><\/h4>\nKat Kerlin<\/b>\nUniversity of California, Davis\nNews and Media Relations\nkekerlin@ucdavis.edu<\/a>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.4.8″ text_font=”Abel||||||||” link_font=”||||||||” link_text_color=”#646564″ text_orientation=”center”]

Earth BioGenome Project<\/strong><\/h4>\nAlise Fisher<\/b>\nSmithsonian Institution\nOffice of Public Affairs\nfishera@si.edu<\/a>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.25″ background_color=”#a8d367″ module_alignment=”center” custom_padding=”0|50px|67px|50px|false|false”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.27.4″ text_font=”||||||||” text_orientation=”center” text_font_size_tablet=”” text_font_size_phone=”15px” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|desktop”]

The International Barcode of Life (iBOL) Consortium is a research alliance with a mission to develop and apply a globally accessible, DNA-based system for the discovery and identification of all multicellular life. Our vision is to illuminate biodiversity for the benefit\u00a0of our living planet.<\/em><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ specialty=”on” padding_top_1=”40px” padding_top_2=”14px” _builder_version=”3.19.4″ background_color=”#3c3d41″ custom_margin=”0px||” custom_margin_tablet=”” custom_margin_phone=”” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|desktop” custom_padding=”0|0px|0|0px|false|false” global_module=”3909″ saved_tabs=”all”][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” padding_top__hover=”40px” parallax__hover=”off” parallax_method__hover=”on” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/iBOL-logo-vertical-small-copy.png” url=”https:\/\/ibol.org\/” align=”center” admin_label=”iBOL logo” _builder_version=”3.23″ max_width_tablet=”100%” max_width_phone=”30%” max_width_last_edited=”on|tablet” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”|||” custom_margin_tablet=”|||0px” custom_margin_phone=”||-67px|-2px” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|tablet” custom_padding=”||50px|” custom_padding_tablet=”||0px|0px” custom_padding_phone=”|0px||” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|phone” always_center_on_mobile=”off”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ specialty_columns=”2″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” padding_top__hover=”14px” parallax__hover=”off” parallax_method__hover=”on” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_row_inner _builder_version=”3.25″ max_width_tablet=”100%” max_width_phone=”100%” max_width_last_edited=”on|desktop” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin_tablet=”-64px|0px||0px” custom_margin_phone=”0px|||0px” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|tablet” custom_padding=”|0px||0px”][et_pb_column_inner saved_specialty_column_type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” parallax__hover=”off” parallax_method__hover=”on” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Footer Links” _builder_version=”4.4.7″ text_font=”Montserrat|500||on|||||” text_text_color=”#aaaaaa” text_font_size=”15px” text_line_height=”2.2em” header_font=”Montserrat||||||||” text_orientation=”center” background_layout=”dark” text_font_size_tablet=”” text_font_size_phone=”10px” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|desktop”]HOME<\/a><\/span>PROGRAMS <\/a><\/span>DNA BARCODING <\/a><\/span>NEWS & EVENTS <\/a><\/span>JOIN<\/a><\/span>CONTACT<\/a><\/span>SITEMAP<\/a>[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider color=”#666666″ color_tablet=”” color_phone=”rgba(0,0,0,0)” color_last_edited=”on|desktop” _builder_version=”3.24″ height=”0px” custom_margin_tablet=”” custom_margin_phone=”||-26px” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|desktop” hide_on_mobile=”off”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text admin_label=”Copyright” _builder_version=”4.1″ text_font=”Source Sans Pro||||” text_text_color=”#aaaaaa” text_font_size=”16″ text_line_height=”1.5em” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” text_orientation=”center” max_width=”560px” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”||30px|” custom_margin_tablet=”||10px|” custom_margin_phone=”” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|tablet” custom_padding=”30px|||” custom_padding_tablet=”” custom_padding_phone=”14px||” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” text_font_size_tablet=”” text_font_size_phone=”13px” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|desktop” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]

\u00a9 Copyright 2020 International Barcode of Life Consortium. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column_inner][\/et_pb_row_inner][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_section]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ecological interactions that cross domains of life have major impacts on ecosystems and human health. Although the COVID-19 pandemic makes this point with destructive clarity, it is clear that zoonotic pathogens pose a standing threat to our species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10789,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[13,15],"tags":[36,42,39],"class_list":["post-10788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-press-release","tag-biodiversity","tag-centre-for-biodiversity-genomics","tag-genomics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10788"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10788\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10827,"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10788\/revisions\/10827"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibol.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}