Ebola Preparedness: Diagnosis Improvement Using Rapid Approaches for Proficiency Testing

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Molecular Diagnostics
• Public Health

Background:

• The 2015 Ebolavirus (EBOV) outbreak highlighted the critical need for accurate and reliable laboratory diagnostics.
• Assessing laboratory capacity was essential to address the global public health emergency.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the accuracy of laboratory diagnostic capacity for Ebolavirus (EBOV) during the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak.
• To develop and implement a proficiency testing (PT) strategy using simulated EBOV specimens.

Main Methods:

• Designed simulated EBOV specimens using in vitro RNA transcripts targeting common EBOV gene regions (NP, GP, L).
• Assessed specimen stability for long-term (-80°C) and short-term (lyophilized) storage.
• Conducted three EBOV proficiency testing rounds between April 2014 and March 2016.

Main Results:

• Simulated EBOV specimens demonstrated stability for up to 1 year at -80°C and 1 week in lyophilized form.
• High accuracy was observed across all PT rounds, with laboratories correctly identifying EBOV RNA transcripts in most cases (3/3, 5/6, 9/9).

Conclusions:

• The developed EBOV proficiency testing panel effectively ensured laboratory competency in detecting Ebolavirus.
• The simulated EBOV specimen is a safe, stable, and reliable tool for future PT programs, especially in lyophilized form for ease of transport.