EVAg

Concept and approach

We are the first and currently, the only 21st century global virus collection conceived as a modern and innovative support organization for scientific research, education and disease control through human and veterinary health programmes.

The project objectives meet the needs of scientists, worldwide, by generating a carefully authenticated animal virus collection that is larger than any existing repository, and readily available to all laboratories that meet approved ethical, safety and security standards.

Development of innovative tools

Joint Research Activity (JRA) is used to exchange know-how between EVAg partners and also to create new tools to develop the infrastructure. Another aspect of tool creation is focused on new techniques and concepts to provide easier and less expensive access to virological materials, taking advantage of the recent advances in science including techniques dedicated to:

• sequencing of viral genomes (NGS)
• genome synthesis
• study of the links between infectivity and mutagenesis
• methods for long term virus conservation
• molecular and serological diagnostics
• bioinformatics and genome-based virus classification (taxonomy)
• virus discovery
• in vivo vertebrate and invertebrate animal studies

EVAg will develop a huge number of innovation end points particularly from joint research activities that will enhance virus diagnostics and promote the prospects of creating antiviral approaches. In particular, EVAg will provide the following assets, which will greatly enhance the infrastructure´s capabilities and services (both within the consortium as well as to outside customers):

• Cell lines with an enhanced potential to isolate and produce viruses from primary clinical samples. Cell lines will be published in peer-reviewed scientific journals and provided physically to recipients within the consortium as well as to customers (outside the consortium) as an access.
• Improved approaches to the sequencing of viruses, from field samples, with the intention of discovering novel viruses.
• Antibodies and proteins based on new and available viruses which can be used by the diagnostics industry to create new detection assays, and by research entities across Europe to enhance the capabilities of studying viral life cycles.
• Molecular detection assays for immediate deployment in cases of emerging epidemics. Cooperation agreements have been issued with the WHO and the OIE corresponding to the worldwide institutions in charge of publicising guidelines that refer to diagnostic procedures.

The technical advances of EVAg will lead to heightened attention in the research community to the consortia as well as to manufacturers of diagnostic tools. The participation in ENIVD and WHOCC will ensure dissemination by relating EVAg to the international public health laboratory community during outbreaks and in times when novel diagnostic recommendations are being issued because of (re-) emergence of viruses.

Quality

Quality is an essential part of the project as it proved to have been a major component for the success of EVAg. The Quality Management System has the ultimate goal of distributing “gold standard products” to the scientific community at large and to improving current practices in the laboratory. It also has to be seen to be a means of strengthening the “team spirit” within the consortium by the establishment of regular exchanges on the issues arising.

Quality & Regulations

EVAg's approach to the convention on Biological & Toxin Weapons: The EVAg project places great importance upon the need to ensure open and fair access to viruses and associated products for research, disease surveillance and anti-viral development.
We stress equally that the supply of biological resources of high pathogenicity is carried out under a process of review by an appointed panel of experts, to ensure the recipients of these reagents are bona-fide researchers with appropriate expertise and containment facilities.

Response to Emergence

Preparedness and response to emerging viral diseases will be addressed and developed through interaction with national centres. Partners specializing in this task will generate standard operation procedures (SOP) for the application of all diagnostic methods derived from the project work. Specific attention will be given to the development of a dedicated Intellectual Property Rights policy aiming at encouraging partners to adopt an appropriate and efficient strategy in terms of results and data protection. The knowledge and Intellectual Property management will include coverage of intellectual property policy, ownership, disclosure of inventions and licensing.
Direct cooperation with the WHO, OIE, CDCs, ENIVD will ensure and reinforce the authorisation of EVAg to generate and distribute globally, diagnostic materials and protocols in the event of epidemiological emergencies.

EVAg Portal

Our ultimate goal is to provide global access to standardised diagnostic, therapeutic and research tools that will significantly enhance our efforts to control diseases and improve human and animal health. Being constantly updated, the EVAg Portal enable to provide an overview on all EVAg qualified resources and capacities: virus, reagents, platforms, protocols, processes as well as trainings and expertise available from all the partners .
This unique platform thus constitutes a cornerstone for virus research projects aimed at epidemic/pandemic preparedness and response, in providing both essential resources as well as a platform for the continuation of project-derived products.

Extension of EVAg network and Integration of new resources

EVAg establishs close relationships and collaborations with international organizations involved in public health (WHO, OIE and FAO). EVAg also develops proposals to become the repository of other relevant European Institutions/networks/research/infrastructures projects, not directly participating in EVAg, in order to ensure the viability of reference viruses used and developed within EU-funded research programmes dealing with viral infections. Thirdly, in global terms, biological resources are scattered among many public health and research institutions. Most of the existing collections are held in laboratories where there is limited access to new technologies for virus characterization (i.e. high throughput sequencing due to lack of equipment, bioinformatic analysis and/or funding) and limited capability for exploitation of their potential value. By strengthening a global network of collaboration, these countries will benefit from the know-how of EVAg partners and EVAg will benefit from access to isolates of more viruses of interest to be included in the virus collection.