In a note dated 7 March 2007, the Ministry of Health designated the Istituto G. Caporale a National Reference Laboratory for Campylobacter.

The Laboratory performs the functions specified by Article 33 of Regulation EC 882/2004, and in particular has the following tasks:

• coordinating within its own sphere of competence the activities of the official laboratories responsible for analysing samples under Article 11 of the same Regulation;
• organizing comparative tests between the official national laboratories and ensuring an appropriate follow-up to the comparative tests performed;
• offering technical-scientific collaboration to the competent authority to implement coordinated control plans, adopted in accordance with Article 53 of the same Regulation;
• collaborating with the Community Reference Laboratory (CRL) and transmitting the information provided by the CRL to the competent authority and the official national laboratories.

Head: Dr. Elisabetta Di Giannatale