ESR’s work in establishing PulseNet Aotearoa New Zealand was recognised by the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) with an International Recognition Award.
PulseNet was instigated by the CDC to develop worldwide regional networks providing early warning on foodborne disease outbreaks, emerging foodborne infections, and acts of food bioterrorism.
The award recognises both the initial steps taken to establish PulseNet methodology in New Zealand, and also ESR’s contribution to the establishment of PulseNet Asia Pacific.
PulseNet Aotearoa New Zealand has been established initially focusing on the four most common notified bacterial diseases in New Zealand - Campylobacter, Salmonella, shiga-toxin producing E. coli (STEC) and Listeria. Each year there are up to 15,000 notified cases of these diseases in New Zealand, with an economic impact in excess of $100 million annually.
For each organism, the standardised PulseNet methodology for pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) has been established at ESR, and certification with PulseNet USA completed.
PFGE is a molecular fingerprinting tool that generates a barcode-like fingerprint from each isolated organism. When sick individuals contract an illness from a common source, the PFGE profiles or patterns generated from the bacteria are often the same. This information can be very useful to investigators trying to find the source of a disease outbreak, enabling them to focus on individuals with the same strain or type of bacteria, without the distraction of unrelated cases. This assists with identifying a common source, and builds the case for effective interventions.
PulseNet Aotearoa New Zealand is one of the tools that will be utilised in ESR’s new SurvINZ surveillance system.
PulseNet Asia Pacific was established in 2002 and currently includes Public Health laboratories from Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan, The Philippines, The People’s Republic of China, New Zealand, Malaysia, Korea, Japan, India, Hong Kong, Bangladesh, and Australia. ESR has also established for PulseNet Asia Pacific a web-based discussion forum that is being used to build communication, share methods and develop the network.
ESR acknowledges support and funding for the development of PulseNet Aotearoa New Zealand from Ministry of Health, the New Zealand Food Safety Authority, Dairy Insight, and the New Zealand Enteric Disease Research Committee.