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<p>The United Kingdom has robust systems in place to detect, assess and respond to
infectious disease threats of both natural and deliberate origin. This was tested
during the assessment of the application of the Global Health Security Agenda Assessment
Tool and was considered to be an exemplar of good practice. These systems are particularly
strong across Public Health England (PHE) and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA)
for emerging zoonotic threats, and the UK has been seen as one of the world leaders
in putting One Health into action. Zoonotic diseases are included within the Government’s
National Risk Register as high risk and needing cross Government action to reduce
the threat, mitigate the risk and respond to cases/outbreaks.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
</p><p>PHE undertakes a varied programme of research into infectious agents and medical
tools required to detect, diagnose, recognise, and respond to outbreaks of infectious
disease. PHE collaborates with academia on modelling threats posed by emerging zoonoses
and assess the roles of cross-immunity and seasonal influenza vaccination on the emergence
of pandemic strains. During the recent Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa, PHE conducted
research on the design and assessment of containment equipment for safe diagnostics
in West Africa; improving diagnosis, understanding pathogenesis, and assessing treatment/prevention
approaches for Ebola virus disease in animal models and human clinical trials. This
capability is and can be applied to all pathogens, including those which are zoonotic.</p><p>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>APHA is engaged in a number of research projects on the subject
of zoonotic pathogens with pandemic potential. This includes: the rapid detection
of coronaviruses, studies into the ability of H5N1 avian influenza viruses to infect,
adapt and become transmissible in mammalian species and research into risks and pathways
for the introduction of Chinese-origin H7N9 avian influenza virus into United Kingdom
and European poultry. APHA is also engaged in various research projects with international
and external collaborators, including European consortiums assessing new and emerging
diseases.</p><p> </p>
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