Nationwide quality assurance of high-throughput diagnostic molecular testing during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: role of the Belgian National Reference Centre

Abstract Since the onset of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Belgium, UZ/KU Leuven has played a crucial role as the National Reference Centre (NRC) for respiratory pathogens, to be the first Belgian laboratory to develop and implement laboratory developed diagnostic assays for SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) and later to assess the quality of commercial kits. To meet the growing demand for decentralised testing, both clinical laboratories and government-supported high-throughput platforms were gradually deployed across Belgium. Consequently, the role... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Reile Janssen
Lize Cuypers
Lies Laenen
Els Keyaerts
Kurt Beuselinck
Sunita Janssenswillen
Bram Slechten
Jannes Bode
Elke Wollants
Kristel Van Laethem
Annabel Rector
Mandy Bloemen
Anke Sijmons
Nathalie de Schaetzen
Arnaud Capron
Kurt Van Baelen
Thierry Pascal
Céline Vermeiren
Fabrice Bureau
Jo Vandesompele
Pieter De Smet
Wouter Uten
Hugues Malonne
Pierre Kerkhofs
Jo De Cock
Veerle Matheeussen
Bruno Verhasselt
Laurent Gillet
Gautier Detry
Bertrand Bearzatto
Jonathan Degosserie
Coralie Henin
Gregor Pairoux
COVID-19 Genomics Belgium Consortium
Piet Maes
Marc Van Ranst
Katrien Lagrou
Elisabeth Dequeker
Emmanuel André
Dokumenttyp: Artikel
Erscheinungsdatum: 2024
Reihe/Periodikum: Virology Journal, Vol 21, Iss 1, Pp 1-17 (2024)
Verlag/Hrsg.: BMC
Schlagwörter: SARS-CoV-2 / COVID-19 / Belgium / Quality assurance / High-throughput testing / National reference centre / Infectious and parasitic diseases / RC109-216
Sprache: Englisch
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-28938493
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : https://doi.org/10.1186/s12985-024-02308-y

Abstract Since the onset of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Belgium, UZ/KU Leuven has played a crucial role as the National Reference Centre (NRC) for respiratory pathogens, to be the first Belgian laboratory to develop and implement laboratory developed diagnostic assays for SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) and later to assess the quality of commercial kits. To meet the growing demand for decentralised testing, both clinical laboratories and government-supported high-throughput platforms were gradually deployed across Belgium. Consequently, the role of the NRC transitioned from a specialised testing laboratory to strengthening capacity and coordinating quality assurance. Here, we outline the measures taken by the NRC, the national public health institute Sciensano and the executing clinical laboratories to ensure effective quality management of molecular testing throughout the initial two years of the pandemic (March 2020 to March 2022).