India has recently become a member of the Centralized Laboratory Network (CLN), which comprises 15 partner facilities across 13 countries, as per the latest update from CEPI. The CLN focuses on testing vaccines for potential use during pandemics and epidemic disease outbreaks. It operates under the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and is recognized as the largest international network with standardized testing methods and materials.

The Centralized Laboratory Network (CLN) has welcomed several new members, including the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Virology (ICMR-NIV), Institut Pasteur de Dakar (IPD) from Senegal, KAVI Institute of Clinical Research (KAVI ICR) and the University of Nairobi Institute of Tropical and Infectious Diseases (UNITID) from Kenya, Synexa Life Sciences from South Africa, and Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI) from Uganda. These esteemed institutions have joined the CLN, further expanding its global presence and expertise in testing vaccines.

The primary aim of the network supported by CEPI is to expediently and precisely identify the most prospective vaccine candidates for combating emerging infectious diseases. Additionally, the expanded network is dedicated to supporting the development of sustainable regional outbreak preparedness infrastructure.

Dr Melanie Saville the Executive Director of Vaccine Research and Development, at CEPI, stated that “Vaccine developers around the world who are working on epidemic or pandemic infectious diseases must have the same level of scientific research and resource available to them to best prepare for future outbreaks. CEPI’s growing network of laboratories will help harmonize the assessment of vaccines against known diseases – like Lassa fever, Nipah and Rift Valley Fever – and prepare us to tackle a future Disease X at speed. Expanding the footprint of CEPI’s Centralised Laboratory Network to include additional expert facilities in the Global South will help to reduce sample transfer and testing times, potentially accelerating the development of vaccines against emerging infectious diseases while supporting sustainable and resilient regional outbreak preparedness infrastructure”.

This initiative has been undertaken to enhance the evaluation process of infectious disease vaccines. Since October 2020, CEPI's Centralized Laboratory Network (CLN) has provided its services, free of charge (excluding sample shipping fees), to all developers of COVID-19 vaccines, regardless of their CEPI funding status. This inclusive offering encompassed the analysis of clinical trial samples for COVID-19 vaccines, encompassing Phase III studies.

In November 2021, CEPI took a significant stride by issuing a Call for Proposals, aiming to expand the network's scope and incorporate the evaluation of vaccines targeting a range of epidemic and pandemic threats beyond the scope of COVID-19.

Image source: Hindustan Times