Genomic Surveillance Unit (GSU)
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Predict, Prevent, Protect
Working at the intersection of genomics, data, and global public health, the Genomic Surveillance Unit developed revolutionary advances in detecting, controlling, and preventing the spread of infectious diseases worldwide.
The Genomic Surveillance Unit was structured to collaborate with governments, industry, policymakers, researchers, and NGOs to harness genomic solutions and build a healthier world.
Our Impact
Understanding how climate impacts health
The GSU collaborated with icddr,b in Bangladesh to combine genomic and environmental data and explore how climate stressors such as rising sea levels may influence disease dynamics. Part of this effort involved modernising and linking historical health databases to support broader analysis. This work will continue within the Parasites & Microbes programme.
Building global, multi-pathogen surveillance systems
In collaboration with the Centre for Epidemic Response and Innovation (CERI) in South Africa, the GSU piloted the integrated surveillance of multiple respiratory pathogens, using standardised protocols to enable data sharing and joint analysis. These panels will be further developed by the Respiratory Virus Initiative.
Scaling up a world-leading COVID-19 sequencing operation
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, genomic surveillance was largely considered a research activity. The GSU was formed out of an unprecedented sequencing operation that interfaced directly with government partners, proving that genomic surveillance could be a valuable tool for public health.
Large genomic data resources that save lives
Malaria is a ferociously complex disease, with humans, malaria parasites, and the mosquitoes that carry them locked in an evolutionary arms race. By maintaining the world’s largest genomic data resources on malaria through MalariaGEN, the GSU enabled research and better public health decision making. As pioneers in open data sharing, the GSU built community, created training resources, and maintained high data standards. This work will continue through at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.
What the Genomic Surveillance Unit offered
1. Products, services, and expertise for pathogen genomics
The Genomic Surveillance Unit’s core expertise was in: curating and analysing trends in large genomic data resources; optimising, scaling, and decentralising protocols; and operating in complex and rapidly changing global networks. The Genomic Surveillance Unit was a recognised leader in sequencing, data analysis, and capacity strengthening.
Building on world-class infrastructure at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the Genomic Surveillance Unit offered a range of tools and processes that could turn genomic data into actionable defence strategies such as vaccines, treatments, and control measures.
They addressed questions such as:
- How do I find new targets for drugs and vaccines?
- Which strains of respiratory virus are circulating?
- What are the genetic markers for resistance to the drugs in use?
2. Integration and analytics for genomic and non-genomic data
The world is complex and genomics alone cannot tell the full story of a disease or an outbreak. But it can add valuable insight when it’s combined with information about changes in control strategies, populations, or climates across time and space.
Using state-of-the-art approaches to data ingestion and curation, the Genomic Surveillance Unit analysed large volumes of both genomic and non-genomic data to answer important questions about deadly pathogens and their vectors.
They addressed questions such as:
- How quickly is resistance evolving?
- How are changes to population and climate affecting disease risk?
- Which drugs are likely to work in which areas?
3. Implementation and mobilisation support
This work to predict and prevent disease outbreaks in order to protect global health is only possible in collaboration with a range of experts across industries and borders. The Genomics Surveillance Unit were trusted partners in strengthening laboratory, bioinformatics, and administrative capacity. Through tailored approaches, they supported every stage of the process from sample acquisition, laboratory processing, and sequencing through to data analysis and effective communication of results.
They addressed questions such as:
- How do I build scalable infrastructure?
- How do I analyse my data for decision-making?
- What does the end-to-end process of genomic surveillance look like in my context?
