DNA test 'surveillance system' to spot future pandemic bugs

Project to be set up in 30 UK hospitals after trial in intensive care units flagged pathogen alerts

A pilot of DNA testing on intensive care patients at St Thomas' Hospital in London will be expanded to 30 UK hospitals. Reuters

Britain announced plans on Tuesday to use rapid DNA tests on patients to detect bugs that could cause the next pandemic.

An early warning system will be set up at 30 hospitals using new technology that can produce results of DNA testing in six hours. The patient data will be passed to a UK health security agency set up after the Covid-19 pandemic.

During a pilot in London, the tests were carried out routinely on patients in intensive care, prompting alerts to public health chiefs for about three in every 100 pathogens. The same tests led to many patients having their antibiotics changed on the basis of the results.

The method of sequencing DNA has been developed by a company called Oxford Nanopore, which said the surveillance project will start in 2025. The Department of Health said it would be used to cut the time between new pathogens emerging and action being taken.

The tests use a method called long-read sequencing to examine strands of DNA in one go, without breaking them up into smaller fragments. The aim is to diagnose respiratory problems while at the same time checking for dangerous bugs.

Britain's Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who has made technology a priority in his plans to reform the state-run National Health Service, said the move would "ensure our world-leading scientists have the latest information on emerging threats at their fingertips".

"If we fail to prepare, we should prepare to fail," he said. "Our NHS was already on its knees when the pandemic struck and it was hit harder than any other comparable healthcare system. We cannot let history repeat itself."

More than 200,000 people died due to Covid-19 in the UK, which was one of Europe's hardest-hit countries despite its leading role in genome sequencing and vaccine development. An inquiry reported in July that Britain's emergency plans had been designed for a flu pandemic, not a coronavirus outbreak.

It called for a new pandemic strategy to be developed and tested every three years in crisis response exercises. Britain is also part of negotiations on a new pandemic treaty that has been delayed over fears of ceding power to the World Health Organisation.

Data from Britain's new monitoring system will form part of an initiative called the 100 Days Mission to develop vaccines and treatment within 100 days of a future pandemic breaking out, said Susan Hopkins, the health security agency's chief medical adviser.

"The UK already has a wealth of expertise in genomic surveillance and this programme will build on that expertise and enable us to bring our resources and capability to tackle developing threats at greater speed," she said.

The new arrangement between the NHS, Oxford Nanopore, Genomics England and the UK Biobank will also monitor for signs of antimicrobial resistance, the government said. The chief executive of Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital, where the tests were piloted, said there had been a clear benefit to patients.

"It’s a momentous day now that we can ensure other hospitals, and more patients, can also benefit from faster and more accurate treatment for severe respiratory conditions thanks to new genomic technology," Prof Ian Abbs.