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Detecting Bio-Threat Agents: The Laboratory Response Network

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2003

Year

Abstract

In response to the threat of bio-terrorism and following a presidential order, officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) established the Laboratory Response Network (LRN) in 1999. This national system is designed to link state and local public health laboratories with other advanced-capacity clinical, military, veterinary, agricultural, water, and food-testing laboratories; including those at the federal level. The LRN is a critical component of CDC’s public health mission, enhancing U.S. readiness to detect and respond to bio-terrorism incidents. In addition to bio-threat agents, the LRN is expanding to include the ability to detect chemical agents.