SPECIAL SECTION: THE LABORATORY RESPONSE NETWORK
Two Decades of Preparedness Excellence:
The Laboratory Response Network
agencies such as the US Department of
Defense (DoD) are vital partners for the
LRN. ASM is instrumental in developing
and maintaining protocols for the
network’s sentinel clinical laboratories
and DoD is engaged in strategic planning
as well as operational and response
activities, notably the 2014 response to the
outbreak of Ebola where a DoD developed
assay was deployed to LRN member
laboratories across the country.
The Laboratory Response Network (LRN)
is the nation’s laboratory emergency
response system for biological, chemical
and radiological threats and other
public emergencies such as natural
disasters. Founded in 1999 by APHL,
the US Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) and the Federal Bureau
of Investigation (FBI) to improve US
readiness for bioterrorism, the LRN has
evolved to address all hazard threats
and remains a valuable resource for law
enforcement and public health officials.
It links local, state and federal public
health laboratories with sentinel clinical,
food, veterinary, environmental and
agricultural laboratories; and military and
international laboratory centers.
A number of non-governmental
organizations such as the American
Society for Microbiology (ASM) and federal
In the years following LRN’s founding,
significant federal and state investment in
public health preparedness strengthened
laboratory capability and capacity
to respond to health threats, both
man-made and naturally occurring.
This investment proved invaluable in
responding to Hurricanes Katrina and
Sandy and other natural disasters. It
also readied public health laboratories
to respond to the nationwide outbreak
of 2009 H1N1 influenza and to emerging
diseases such as Middle East Respiratory
Syndrome (MERS), Ebola and Zika as well
as the ongoing opioid epidemic and the
emerging lung injury associated with
vaping.
In recognition of this important milestone,
APHL would like to recognize the work
of LRN laboratories, as well as partners
working within the LRN to ensure the best
quality emergency response system for
the United States. n
Listen
20 Years of the Laboratory Response Network
(Lab Culture podcast)
Read more
The LRN’s job is to prepare, detect and
respond. But what does that mean?
(APHL Lab Blog)
Celebrating 20 Years of the Laboratory
Response Network: Partnering in Preparedness
and Response
(APHL Lab Matters, Spring 2019)
CBP Labs Counter Threats at US Borders (APHL
Lab Matters, Winter 2019)
The LRN Turns 20: Two Decades of Detecting
Threats from Anthrax to Zika
(APHL Lab Matters, Fall 2018)
Sharing the Future: Data Exchange in the
Laboratory Response Network
(APHL Lab Matters, Summer 2018)
Goodbye to Mice? APHL and CDC Host LRN
Botulinum Neurotoxin Detection Training (APHL
Lab Matters, Spring 2018)
Colorado Responds to “Perfect Storm” of
Challenges (APHL Lab Matters, Winter 2017)
CDC recognized APHL for 20 years of partnership in the Laboratory Response Network
16
LAB MATTERS Fall 2019
PublicHealthLabs
@APHL
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