COVID-19 testing on America's front line
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ALT A screenshot of text that reads in part: ""CDC is conducting a new pilot on samples it is collecting as part of its Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance (TGS) program that will provide early detection of flu, RSV, and select other respiratory viruses, in addition to SARS-CoV-2. The pilot, which will last for several months, will be implemented by Ginkgo Bioworks and XpresCheck. Samples that test positive for these viruses will be sequenced and uploaded to public databases to provide valuable information to public health officials and policy makers. “The expansion of the Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance program to flu, RSV, and other pathogens is essential as we head into fall respiratory season. The TGS program, which began during the COVID-19 pandemic, acted as an early warning system to detect new and rare variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and will do the same for other respiratory viruses going forward,” said Dr. Cindy Friedman, chief of CDC’s Travelers’ Health Branch."
ALT A screenshot of this text: "Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance for Early Detection of New SARS-CoV-2 Variants What’s New in TGS: In preparation for fall/winter respiratory season, TGS launched a nasal sampling multipathogen pilot, which will test for Flu A/B, RSV, SARS-CoV-2, and other respiratory pathogens. Program Impact How It Works The Traveler Genomic Surveillance program (TGS), led by CDC’s Travelers’ Health Branch, is a public-private partnership that plays an important role in U.S. national biosecurity through its two major goals: early detection of new SARS-CoV-2 variants and other pathogens and filling in gaps in global biosurveillance."
![A screenshot of this text:
"CINDY FRIEDMAN, CDC [00:27:26]
The expiration of the public health emergency will not impact our program for the next year. We will sustain the current footprint on both the nasal swab side and the wastewater side. And we're going to be integrating multi-pathogen targets as well, both on the nasal side and the aircraft wastewater side. And we hope to expand to 2 to 3 new airports in the coming year."](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FwQzh_bWAAAZhIV.png?name=orig)
ALT A screenshot of this text: "CINDY FRIEDMAN, CDC [00:27:26] The expiration of the public health emergency will not impact our program for the next year. We will sustain the current footprint on both the nasal swab side and the wastewater side. And we're going to be integrating multi-pathogen targets as well, both on the nasal side and the aircraft wastewater side. And we hope to expand to 2 to 3 new airports in the coming year."
ALT A screenshot of this text: "SAN FRANCISCO – May 9, 2023 – San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is the first airport in the United States to launch a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) program to continuously monitor airplane wastewater samples from the onsite triturator for variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. CDC’s partner in administering the program, Concentric by Ginkgo, the biosecurity and public health unit of Boston-based synthetic biology company Ginkgo Bioworks, has installed an automatic sampling device that regularly collects combined wastewater flows from international arriving flights at SFO. These samples are then sent to an approved laboratory for testing."
