National Reference Laboratory for Campylobacter

By a note dated 7 March 2007, the Ministry for Health has appointed the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise “G. Caporale” as National Reference Laboratory for Campylobacter (NRL). The NRL for Campylobacter carries out the tasks referred to in art. 33 of EC Regulation no. 882/2004, more specifically it is in charge of:

• Cooperating with the Community Reference Laboratory for Campylobacter (EU-RLC; National Veterinary Institute (SVA), Uppsala;
• Coordinating within its competences the activities of official National laboratories;
• Organizing interlaboratory circuits among official National laboratories and ensuring an adequate follow-up of the comparative tests performed;
• Ensuring that the technical and scientific instruction supplied by the Community reference Laboratory are delivered to the Ministry of Health and to the official National Laboratories;
• Ensuring scientific and technical assistance to the Ministry of Health to implement control plans;
• Organizing the yearly workshop and rafting the yearly report on the activities carried out by the Ministry of Health.

The Laboratory tests have been validated in compliance with ISO/IEC 17025 standard. Laboratory analysis results are guaranteed both by the use of test methods validated or acknowledged internationally and by the periodic participation into interlaboratory circuits.

Tanks to phenotypic and molecular characterization of strains of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli insulated by the environment, animals and food, the NRL for Campylobacter can provide a valuable support to epidemiological studies and to territory-based screening.