The study has been activated in a coordinated manner across 21 countries on four continents, demonstrating the capacity of the international scientific community to rapidly generate evidence in response to a public health emergency. The initiative is supported by the WHO, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), the European BeReady network and numerous academic, healthcare and public health institutions worldwide.
As highlighted by the WHO, the deployment of NAVIS is a practical example of how previously prepared research networks can be activated immediately in response to an emerging outbreak. In this case, more than 1,600 experts from over 130 countries took part in an international scientific consultation that enabled key research priorities to be identified and the study protocol to be agreed within days.
“The outbreak has highlighted the importance of having protocols in place before emergencies arise. Research cannot begin when a crisis emerges; it must be ready to be activated from the outset”, explains Dr Roger Paredes.
A unique opportunity to advance understanding of hantavirus
Andes hantavirus is a zoonotic virus endemic to certain regions of South America that can cause a severe disease known as hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome. Unlike other hantaviruses, it is one of the few for which person-to-person transmission has been documented.
Outbreaks of this disease are infrequent, making clinical and epidemiological studies difficult to conduct. For this reason, each outbreak represents an opportunity to generate knowledge that can improve strategies for diagnosis, surveillance and treatment, as well as the development of future medical countermeasures. “Through the advanced studies programme in immunology and virology that we coordinate at IrsiCaixa, our aim is to analyse the immune response developed by patients against this virus and use this knowledge to identify potential antivirals and antibodies with therapeutic potential”, says Blanco.
For her part, Izquierdo-Useros adds: “Studying in depth the viruses that surround us and building up knowledge allows us to respond more quickly to outbreaks, such as the recent hantavirus outbreak, while also being better prepared for future emergencies and for new viruses that may emerge.”
The NAVIS initiative uses a harmonised protocol that enables data and biological samples to be collected in a standardised way across all participating countries, facilitating the comparability of results and accelerating the generation of scientific knowledge.
A model for preparedness against future pandemics
The experience has recently been documented in an article published in the scientific journal The Lancet, led by WHO officials and international experts in epidemic preparedness. It identifies the deployment of NAVIS as an example of how research can be operationally integrated into emergency response mechanisms and contribute to generating scientific evidence in real time.
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