Conference in German workshop "Mycobacterial infections"

January 29^th, 2013

Romero B., Bezos J., Casal C., Alvarez J., Lozano F., Dominguez L. and de Juan L.

The European Union Reference Laboratory for Bovine Tuberculosis was assigned to the VISAVET Health Surveillance Centre (Madrid, Spain) in 2008. The EU-RL has the following general functions and duties: a) Coordinating the methods employed in the Member States for diagnosing diseases; b) Assisting actively in the diagnosis of disease outbreaks in Member States by receiving pathogen isolates for confirmatory diagnosis, characterisation and epizootic studies; c) Facilitating the initial or further training of experts in laboratory diagnosis with a view to the harmonisation of diagnostic techniques throughout the Community; 4) Collaborating, as regards methods of diagnosing animal diseases falling within their competence, with the competent laboratories in third countries where those diseases are prevalent; and 5) Conducting initial and further training courses for the benefit of staff from national reference laboratories and of experts from developing countries. The EU-RL has a technical qualified staff together with equipment and reagents necessary to fulfill the proposed activities.
A work programme that includes the activities to be performed each year is defined and subsequently a technical and a financial report are submitted to the EC. The main activities developed by the EU-RL during 2012 will be presented: a) Potency test of tuberculins; b) Titration of tuberculins; c) Diagnosis of tuberculosis in camelids; d) Cut-off point in the IFN-y test; e) Development of an European Standard; f) Reference reagents; g) World Wide Web page; h) Harmonisation of protocols; i) Comparative tests; j) lVIissions; and k) Meetings. Moreover, the EU-RL gives advice and support to all the NRLs and the European Commission (training activities, scientific reports, equipment, reactives, protocols, references, etc)

	Servicio de Micobacterias (MYC). Centro de Vigilancia Sanitaria Veterinaria (VISAVET). Universidad Complutense (UCM).
	Departamento de Sanidad Animal. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad Complutense (UCM).