SPIEZ, Switzerland, July 31 (Reuters) – The setting is straight out of a spy thriller: crystal clear waters below, snow-capped Swiss Alps above and in between, a super-secure facility researching the most deadly pathogens mortals of the world
The Spiez Laboratory, known for its detective work on chemical, biological and nuclear threats since World War II, was commissioned by the World Health Organization last year to be the first in a global network of high security labs that will grow, store and share newly. they discovered microbes that could trigger the next pandemic.
WHO’s BioHub program was born, in part, out of frustration at the obstacles researchers faced in obtaining samples of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, first detected in China, to understand its dangers and develop tools to combat it.
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But just over a year later, scientists involved in the effort have run into obstacles.
These include securing the necessary safeguards to accept samples of coronavirus variants from various countries, the first phase of the project. Some of the biggest countries in the world may not cooperate. And there is still no mechanism for sharing samples to develop vaccines, treatments or tests without incurring intellectual property protections.
“If we have another pandemic like the coronavirus, the goal would be for it to stay where it started,” Isabel Hunger-Glaser, head of the BioHub project in Spiez, told Reuters in a rare media interview at the lab. Hence the need to get samples to the center so it can help scientists around the world assess the risk.
“We realized it’s a lot harder” than we thought, he said.
SAFETY IN THE MOUNTAINS
Spiez Lab’s exterior gives no hint of the fascinating work inside. Its angular architecture resembles European university buildings erected in the 1970s. Cows sometimes graze in the grassy central courtyard.
But the biosecurity officer in charge is keeping the blinds closed. Alarms sound if your door is open for more than a few seconds. Control multiple screens showing security camera views of labs with the highest biosafety level (BSL) precautions.
SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID, is studied in BSL-3 laboratories, the second highest safety level. Virus samples used in the BioHub are stored in sealed freezers, Hunger-Glaser said. An air pressure reduction system means that clean air would flow into safer areas, rather than leaking contaminated air, into a gap.
Scientists working with coronaviruses and other pathogens wear protective suits, sometimes with their own air supply. They work with samples in a hermetically sealed containment unit. The waste leaving the lab is heated to 1,830 F (1,000 degrees Celsius) to kill any pathogens that cling to it.
So far, Spiez has never had an accidental leak, the team says. That reputation is a key part of why they were chosen as the first WHO BioHub, Hunger-Glaser said.
Proximity to WHO headquarters, two hours away in Geneva, also helped. The WHO and the Swiss government are funding the annual budget of 600,000 Swiss francs ($626,000) for its first phase.
Researchers have always shared pathogens and there are some existing regional networks and repositories. But the process is ad hoc and often slow.
The exchange process has also been controversial, for example when researchers in rich countries receive credit for the work of less well-connected scientists in developing countries.
“You often just traded stuff with your friends,” Hunger-Glaser said.
Marion Koopmans, head of the Virology Department at Erasmus MC in the Netherlands, said it took her lab a month to get hold of SARS-CoV-2 after it emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December of 2019.
The Chinese researchers quickly posted a copy of the genetic sequence online, which helped the researchers begin the initial work. But efforts to understand how a new virus is transmitted and how it responds to existing tools require live samples, scientists said.
FIRST CHALLENGES
Luxembourg was the first country to share samples of new coronavirus variants with the BioHub, followed by South Africa and Great Britain.
Luxembourg sent Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta variants, while the latter two countries shared Omicron, the WHO said.
Luxembourg obtained samples of Omicron from South Africa, through the center, less than three weeks after its identification, allowing its researchers to begin assessing the risks of the now-dominant strain. Portugal and Germany also received samples from Omicron.
But Peru, El Salvador, Thailand and Egypt, all of which indicated in early 2022 that they wanted to send variants found in the country, are still waiting, largely because it’s unclear which official in each country should provide the legal guarantees necessary, the fam- said Glaser.
There is no international protocol on who should sign the forms providing security details and usage agreements, he added. None of the four countries responded to requests for comment.
Both the WHO and Hunger-Glaser emphasized that the project is a pilot and that they have already accelerated certain processes.
Another challenge is how to share samples used in research that could lead to commercial gains, such as vaccine development. BioHub samples are freely shared to provide broad access. However, this raises potential problems if, for example, drug manufacturers profit from the discoveries of uncompensated researchers.
The WHO plans to address this in the long term and bring laboratories in each global region online, but it is not yet clear when or how it will be funded. The voluntary nature of the project can also slow it down.
“Some countries will never send virus, or it can be extremely difficult: China, Indonesia, Brazil,” Koopmans said, referring to their stance on recent outbreaks. None of the three responded to requests for comment.
The project also comes amid increased attention to laboratories around the world after unproven claims in some Western countries that a leak from a high-security laboratory in Wuhan may have caused the COVID-19 pandemic, an accusation which China and most international scientists have rejected.
Hunger-Glaser said thinking about emerging threats needs to change in the wake of COVID-19.
“If it’s a real emergency, the WHO should even get a plane” to transport the virus to scientists, he said.
“If you can prevent the spread, it’s worth it.”
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Reporting by Jennifer Rigby; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Nick Macfie
Our standards: the Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.