EpiGen Ethiopia: Harnessing the Power of Genomics to Prevent Epidemics

Preparing Ethiopia for the next epidemic: The EpiGen project is creating a system to track and analyse the genetic composition of pathogens that could pose a public health threat.

The story of human genomics is one that many people are eager to read, as it provides insights into ancestry mapping or helps identify risk factors for specific diseases. However, the genomic story of pathogens is equally fascinating and, in a post-pandemic era, ever present. Understanding pathogen genomics - sequencing the genomes of bacteria, parasites, and viruses - means we can understand the diseases, track their evolution, and – thus – learn how to better fight them through vaccines or other preventive measures and/or treatment. Genomic surveillance involves continuously tracking harmful viruses, bacteria and parasites (e.g., malaria) by studying their genetic make-up to understand how they are similar or different.

Understanding pathogens genomics, by sequencing the genomes of bacteria, parasites, and viruses, means we can understand the diseases, track their evolution, and – thus – learn how to better fight them

To boost global cooperation in this area, the WHO created a 10-year Global Genomic Surveillance Strategy for 2022-2032. This plan aims to bring countries together, share knowledge, and improve efforts at all levels - local, regional, and global - to better monitor and respond to diseases with the potential to cause pandemics or epidemics.

Inequalities Hinder Global Push for Genomic Surveillance

In sub-Saharan Africa, some important challenges such as infrastructure and human resource capacity, as well as the interaction between clinicians, researchers and decision makers threaten to slow down the development of a genomic surveillance system. With over 110 million people, Ethiopia is the second most populated country in Africa. Despite significant improvements in population health, infectious diseases remain a central issue accounting for 85% of all health problems in Ethiopia. The EpiGen Ethiopia project works to strengthen the country’s ability to fight infectious diseases by creating a system to track and study the genetic make-up of pathogens. This will help health officials make better decisions to protect public health.

We need strong and resilient health systems that can detect, respond, and eventually prevent infectious disease threats, wherever they occur in the world. EpiGen will contribute to this in Ethiopia. — Tobias Rinke de Wit

Around 30 health facilities across the country have been selected for genomic surveillance. Various viruses (dengue, HIV, …), bacteria (cholera, tuberculosis, salmonella), and parasites (malaria), will be monitored, and their similarities and differences be analysed.

For example, a gene deletion in Plasmodium falciparum, a dangerous parasite causing malaria, allows it to escape detection by rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), and lead to more severe symptoms and to a spread of the disease. In the context of EpiGen, we will map drug-resistant malaria parasites across different regions and populations in Ethiopia, taking into account the local environment and transmission patterns. This will help us better predict the evolution of the disease and identify key risk factors. This project led by PhD student Bacha Mekonen, under the supervision of Lemu Golassa of Addis Ababa University, and co-supervised by Alfredo Mayor and Lauren Fromont of ISGlobal, is one of the many research projects commissioned by the Ethiopian Public Health Institute under EpiGen Ethiopia.

The EpiGen network: 334 facilities (in green), of which 30 are dedicated to sample collection (in red) as soon as an outbreak is detected by any of the 334.

The results of genomic surveillance projects like Bacha’s will be used directly to inform and guide public health interventions.

The EpiGen project is a critical step in securing the health of millions of people in Ethiopia and beyond. By building a robust genomic surveillance system, EpiGen is empowering local health systems to better anticipate and respond to infectious disease threats. In an era where global health depends on swift, coordinated action, this project is helping to build stronger, more resilient health systems.

Acknowledgements

This blog post is written as part of the EpiGen Ethiopia project funded by EDCTP3 (HORIZON-JU-GH-EDCTP3-2022-CALL1-01-03, #101103188) and led by Prof Tobias Rinke de Wit, Dr Dawit Wolday, and Dr Geremew Tasew.