DURABLE at mid-term

By Gianfranco Munizza, Project Manager – GO

DURABLE is a network of leading institutes from academia and public health centres across the EU, with an outstanding track record in epidemic research and global health support. Set up in 2023 to coordinate global collaboration—from pathogen detection, evolutionary analysis, and threat characterisation to data collection and sharing—for optimal threat response, DURABLE is coordinated by Jean-Claude Manuguerra (IP) and Marion Koopmans (Erasmus MC) and funded by HERA. 

Over the past 30 months, DURABLE has delivered on its ambition to provide high-quality scientific information rapidly, supporting HERA policies during infectious threat responses, such as the avian flu outbreaks in Finland and the USA, and the Mpox epidemic in Africa. It has validated and deployed novel diagnostics, genomics, and analytical workflows for filoviruses, influenza A, arboviruses, coronaviruses, and Mpox viruses. 

This coordinated effort has built an extended network of laboratories for infectious disease preparedness and response. It also prompted DURABLE to work on a position paper on the threat posed by the In Vitro Diagnostic Regulation (IVDR) in Europe to pandemic preparedness and response. 

Following HERA’s thematic restructuring, DURABLE has aligned its focus on respiratory, zoonotic/direct contact, and vector-borne diseases. It leverages multidisciplinary expertise across cross-cutting themes—from assessing key pathogen traits and developing systems immunology platforms to monitor population immunity against H5 avian influenza, to tracking SARS-CoV-2 variant evolution and refining diagnostic tests, models, and countermeasures for HERA’s preparedness and response. 

An educational program led by the Pasteur Network complements this research agenda, networking early-career researchers across partners. It includes exchange fellowships, hands-on training, and courses on Research Management during Outbreaks and on Bioinformatics, designed around simulated outbreak scenarios. This initiative has fostered a community of research managers active on the WHO–HIVE platform. 

DURABLE serves as the biological intelligence arm of HERA, integrating science, innovation, and public health. Adopting a One Health approach, it aims to become a one-stop shop for diagnostics, research, preparedness, and response to current and future health threats for citizens in the EU and worldwide.