Australia creates a rapid response animal disease center

Terra Daily reports that Australia’s CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization) has created an advanced animal health lab: "The new 'state of the art' laboratory will be able to process more samples, faster, in the event of an emergency animal disease outbreak, and will be located within the AAHL's advanced high biocontainment facility," Senator Carr said.

"AAHL's core responsibility is to respond to outbreaks of emergency animal diseases such as foot and mouth disease or equine influenza. The emergency response laboratory gives the Government further confidence that AAHL and the nation will be ready to detect and quickly respond to even the worst such outbreaks.

"The new high-throughput testing laboratory will play a dual role at AAHL. During 'routine mode', when there is no emergency animal disease outbreak, the laboratory will continue to function as a core diagnostic area, an area for test development and validation and for predictive biomodelling activities.

"In the face of an outbreak the laboratory will become an assembly line for samples and will enable AAHL staff to perform serology tests on up to 10,000 samples per day, with maximum biosecurity. Australia's outbreak of equine influenza in August 2007 demonstrated the need for a high throughput laboratory in Australia," Senator Carr said….

Australia map from the CIA World Factbook, Wikimedia Commons