Four new ISTC projects have started in the second quarter of 2011 to increase biosafety in Tajikistan and Kazakhstan. Five scientists will be trained in Europe to modern diagnostics methods for investigating dangerous diseases and pathogens. These projects totalizing a $500,000 investment are part of a larger $10 million Central Asia initiative of the European Union and ISTC to mitigate the impact of diseases and pathogens migrating from the region or transiting it. 

The starting projects intend to train scientific personnel at a host laboratory in the EU to raise their theoretical and practical skills in using modern diagnostics methods. A number of laboratories in Tajikistan possess modern biosafety and biosecurity diagnostics equipment but the staff doesn’t have the expertise to operate them efficiently, therefore limiting the capacity to fight bio threats in the region.

In the past years, republics of the Former USSR have seen outbreaks of diseases caused by hazardous bacteria and viruses such as anthrax, avian influenza, plague, tularemia, hemorrhagic fevers and encephalitis, etc. The situation in the region is aggravated by financial limitations, obsolete laboratory equipment and insufficient bio-safety culture. Therefore, these new initiatives are critical for the region’s public health but also to limit risks of epidemics and pandemics.

Goals and deliverables

Sub-area 1 - Provision of training to technical personnel (laboratory assistants):

• methods in the field of diagnostics (classical methods and modern methods),
• international laws and regulations in the field of public health and animal health,
• handling of, specimens for classical (including ELISA) and modern (such as molecular analysis) methods,
• personnel protection and protection of the environment,
• disinfection and waste handling.

Sub-area 2 - Provision of training to scientific personnel (medical doctors and biologists):

• classification of pathogens,
• international laws and regulations in the field of public health and animal health,
• regulations and recommendations for work with pathogens by World Health Organization (WHO) and those valid in the EU and in the relevant country
• diagnostic tools (bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites), including classical (inter alia, EL1SA) and modern methods (polymerase chain reaction, real-time PCR, sequence analysis, chip technology), advantages and disadvantages of the methods, and requirements for the related laboratory equipment,
• bio-safety issues relating to work with pathogens, including risk assessments, use of bio-safety cabinets, personnel protection, equipment disinfection, waste handling, protection of specimen during the handling, environmental protection and plans for hygiene emergencies,
• maintaining a collection of living pathogenic agents,
• operating a depository of pathogenic agents,
• documentation of work in the laboratory.

Sub-area 3 -Provision of training to staff in supervisory positions:

• identification of stakeholders in the country,
• identification of experts on regulatory and legal aspects in the country and on international laws and regulations (e.g. on International Health Regulations by WHO),
• experts in classification of pathogens, inter alia, as reflected in the list of pathogens of the
• Australia Group,
• regulations within the EU, including the Workers Protection Directive, work on genetically modified organisms, etc.,
• specific bio-safety and bio-security issues, including personnel protection, concepts for waste
• handling (hygiene plans), environmental protection, protection of specimens from theft or intentional release, and plans for emergencies.