A second external quality assessment of isolation and identification of influenza viruses in cell culture in the Asia Pacific region highlights improved performance by participating laboratories

Abstract

Influenza viruses must be amplified in cell culture for detailed antigenic analysis and for phenotypic assays assessing susceptibility to antiviral drugs or for other assays. Following on from the first external quality assessment (EQA) for isolation and identification of influenza viruses using cell culture techniques in 2016, a follow up EQA was performed in 2019 for National Influenza Centres (NICs) in the World Health Organization (WHO) South East Asia and Western Pacific Regions. Nineteen WHO NICs performed influenza virus isolation and identification techniques on an EQA panel comprising 16 samples, containing influenza A or B viruses and negative control samples. One sample was used e..