The WHO South-East Asia Regional Office (SEARO) is leveraging innovative solutions to address the challenges posed by the changing poliovirus epidemiological landscape to ensure sustained progress in regional polio eradication efforts. One such advancement is the detection of Poliovirus by Direct Detection through Nanopore Sequencing (DDNS). DDNS offers rapid turnaround times for poliovirus detection with information on circulating polio serotypes and applies to both acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance and environmental surveillance (ES). SEARO, in collaboration with member states and the experts from the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control (NIBSC) and Imperial College London (ICL) in the United Kingdom, is currently validating the utility of DDNS as a supplementary tool or a replacement for the conventional methods currently used in the polio laboratory network for poliovirus detection.
As a part of this effort, Immunization and Vaccine development unit, (IVD) SEARO organized a hands-on workshop aimed at building capacity in the region, with a particular focus on member states with high polio workloads (India, Thailand, Indonesia). Held at the Training Center for Excellence in Medical Sciences (TEMs), Department of Medical Sciences, Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, from November 18 to November 29, 2024, the workshop brought together laboratory professionals from four national polio laboratories in India, Indonesia, and Thailand, and observers from Ministry of Health, Indonesia, WCO Indonesia, and WHO SEARO. The workshop was formally inaugurated by Dr Chaiwat Pulsrikarn, Deputy Director of NIH Thailand, and Dr Ratana Tacharoenmuang, Head of TEMs. The training sessions were led by NIBSC experts Dr Javier Martin, Dr Erika Bujaki, and Dr Victory Poloamina, along with ICL experts Professor Nicholas Grassly, Dr Alex Shaw, and Dr Ben Bellekom, who brought their wealth of knowledge and experience to the participants, ensuring a high level of expertise in the training.
Guided by international experts, participants learned the intricacies of using DDNS to detect poliovirus in AFP and ES samples. The workshop extensively focused on pan-analytical aspects of DDNS. Notably, the training also focused on enhancing the region’s capacity to perform whole-genome sequencing of poliovirus using nanopore sequencing, a significant step towards more advanced and comprehensive poliovirus detection methods. Participants were trained in the bioinformatics analysis of the whole genome sequences.
The success of this workshop is a testament to WHO IVD SEARO’s commitment to working with member states and international polio experts to improve its capability for rapid detection of circulating polioviruses, allowing public health responses to be more efficient and cost-effective. This continued collaboration will ensure that SEAR remains a flag-bearer in the fight against polio, safeguarding billions of lives and future generations and keep region polio free.
This activity will generate evidence on feasibility and cost effectiveness of scaling up the DDNS method in polio laboratories for poliovirus detection in stool and waste water.