Updates from the KNCV's Dream Fund Project "No More Pandemics" - Consortium Meeting

During the Union World Conference on Lung Health, the results of the Dream Fund project were presented in various ways. Noud Hermans, a PhD candidate at KNCV, gave an oral presentation during the “late breaker” session. He discussed how errors in sequencing and analysis processes affect predictions of drug resistance in tuberculosis bacteria. He showed two examples of errors that led to incorrect predictions and proposed solutions.

Aizat Kulzhabaeva (PhD candidate at KNCV Kyrgyzstan) and Togolani Maya (PhD candidate at the National Institute for Medical Research in Tanzania) presented posters on the use of Nanopore sequencing to detect resistant tuberculosis. Togolani focused on the design, implementation, and initial results of the study in Tanzania. Aizat presented nearly completed analyses showing that targeted next-generation sequencing (tNGS) can significantly improve the speed of detecting drug-resistant tuberculosis. The Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) test proved particularly valuable for detecting resistance to new drugs such as bedaquiline and pretomanid. These findings support the idea of incorporating tNGS into national diagnostic protocols.

Beyond the presentations, project team members participated in several side meetings. These included country-specific sessions to discuss planning of project activities for 2026, a meeting with colleagues from the University of Ottawa on the cost-effectiveness of targeted Nanopore sequencing, and discussions with BioMérieux, the exclusive distributor of Oxford Nanopore Technologies products, regarding the supply of AmPORE-TB test kits.

Consortium Meeting

The highlight was the first in-person meeting of the Dream Fund project consortium. This took place on Saturday, November 22, 2025, at the Bella Center in Copenhagen. Twenty-six participants attended, representing partners from the Netherlands, Kyrgyzstan, Tanzania, Vietnam, and Canada. The meeting was chaired by Dr. Richard Anthony (RIVM) and Ms. Norma Madden (KNCV). The goal was to share updates, exchange knowledge, and review progress. The day began with a welcome address by Dr. Kristin Kremer (project leader) and Dr. Mustapha Gidado (Executive Director of KNCV).

The morning focused on tNGS for resistant tuberculosis. Presentations covered comparative analyses of different tNGS methods and validation studies of the Oxford Nanopore Technologies test in Tanzania and Vietnam. Other talks addressed technical aspects such as alignment with standard methods and the impact of sequencing and analysis artifacts. Three presentations focused on predicting resistant tuberculosis in clinical samples from Kyrgyzstan and Tanzania, examining time to diagnosis and treatment outcomes.

In the afternoon, discussions centred on feasibility, acceptance, and costs of Nanopore sequencing. Speakers from Kyrgyzstan and Tanzania shared their findings, followed by a joint cost-effectiveness analysis by Dr. Edine Tiemersma (KNCV) and Dr. Alice Zwerling (University of Ottawa). Short updates followed on other sequencing activities at KNCV and in Kyrgyzstan, epidemiological studies at RIVM, and applications for other infectious diseases in Tanzania. The meeting concluded with perspectives from managers of the national tuberculosis programs in Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam on the future and integration of genome sequencing in their countries. Each session included time for questions, leading to lively discussions. The positive interactions and feedback highlighted the collaborative spirit of this project.