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This page updated 10-12-06

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NPDN Diagnostic SOPs ______________________________________Looking for Entomology links?  Click here

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NEW!  Joint Diagnostician & IT Meeting: Kansas City, Missouri. 16 - 17 October 2006 Excelsior Springs, Missouri at the: Elms Resort and Spa 1-800-843-3567 or 816-630-5500 [401 Regent St., Excelsior Springs, MO 64024].  PDIS USERS: A morning session will be held on the 18th for participants who want to remain to discuss the Plant Diagnostic Information System (PDIS).  The agenda will be posted here as soon as it is available. Click Here to Register     View Agenda for 10/16-17     View Agenda for 10/18 (Note: you may need to log into the NPDN website to access these links) Hotel reservations will be available from September 1, 2006. Hotel Room Rate: $89/night for single or double occupancy. The hotel reservation cutoff date is 1-Oct-06.  Reservation requests received after Oct 1, 2006, will be subject to availability and prevailing rack rate.  When making the reservation please ask for the rate for the "NPDN Data Collection Meeting"; the hotel may also be using "KState" or "KSU".

^NEW!  Conference call/Meeting Minutes: Conference Call 10-11-06

Training Opportunities

        Virus Inclusion Workshop 5-8-06 through 5-10-06  For more information, please read the letter and the brochure (PDFs).

        Real-time PCR Workshop 1-31-06 through 2-2-06  For more information, please contact Paul Vincelli at pvincell@uky.edu.

Soybean rust ELISA kit:  http://www.envirologix.com/artman/publish/article_151.shtml  (about $295.00 each, as of 6-8-05)

PDIS demo  3/28-29/05

• Presentation here

• Day 1 notes here (Overview, Administration, and Diagnostics) 

• Day 2 notes here (Image Library, Secure Communications, Ag Alert System, Open Q&A)

SOPs:  

•     NEPDN Diagnostic Tools page (SOPs and other useful information for Network labs)

•     NPDN SOD Diagnostic SOP (links to the document directly) (or PDF)

•     NPDN SBR Diagnostic SOP  here (PDF)

Lab requirements for APHIS 526 Permit to move [samples] PDF  Other useful information for 526 permitting here

Diagnostic Committee minutes 11-4-04 (Minutes of Committee Meeting at SPDN Regional Meeting November '04)

1.      Committee mechanics – decide who will be on the committee in the future – decide within your state.  One rep from each state, preferably a diagnostician.  Also, all the entomologists will be in this Committee for now, perhaps to branch off if they decide their needs would best be met as their own committee.  Mass email to go out to path and ent folks to help the states make the decision.

2.      Need volunteers for chair/co-chairs.  Involves a couple conference calls, some surveying, email communication, facilitating regional communication.

2.1.   Clarissa Balbalian and Meg Williamson new co-chairs.  Steve and Jackie are immediate past-chairs, available to help in the next year.  Mary Ann Hansen to be the secretary.

3.      Minimum capabilities.  We need to update the information from February – fill out simplified survey.  Note everything on the list handed out was considered necessary.

4.      Need to talk to the IT committee – about how to get each state truly working, seamlessly sending all the data, without a second thought from the diagnosticians – no double-entry. 

5.      Training for diagnosticians:  SOD training – all techniques up through DNA extraction.  ELISA, culturing, DNA extraction, dip tests.  Perhaps another one for PCR, all by itself.  Carrie to report back to Committee after conversation with USDA.

6.      Permit issues.  Need to know the specifics – how to apply, what happens to the application once sent in, what about inspections, how long are the permits good for (5 yrs?), what about DNA or killed spores?  Clarissa sent copies of her application to Carrie, Carrie sent to Committee.

6.1.   Who has applied?  AR, MS (has it), SC (has disease one), FL (has it), AL (temporary), TX (has one).  NC?  LA?  TN?

7.      Communications during diagnostics of regulatory pests:  Who contacts the client?  Should the policy be to refer them to the regulatory agency?  Is this decided at the state level or federal?  What about the website – Carrie talk to Ron Stinner and Phil Berger and report back to group.  Need a list of names of people who need access – can we do one from each state, will this include the regulatory folks?  What about role-based viewing so AL can only see the AL results?

8.      Experts/ reference collections: please update.  Make sure you have phone numbers, addresses, etc, as well as permission of the expert to be listed on the website for the network.  Note that the services will be paid for on a case-by-case basis.  How about adding the turf listserve (Mary Anne to give the email), "Ornaent", commodity listserves?  Need list of endangered collections, as well.  Make sure to note limitations on expertise on website.  Clarissa will get a list of all committee members and their email addresses; Meg will send them reminders to do this.

9.      Biosecurity issues.  Larry Barnes:  Receipt of select agents indicates the necessity of working under higher security/containment.  What is the real deal – specific list of the must-have equipment for receiving unknowns or suspect select agents to be in compliance.  Carrie to talk to APHIS and report back to the Committee. 

10.  Conference calls:  Semi-annually (First part of October and March).  Carrie will set up phone numbers, etc.

11.  Carrie send to group SOD minutes from yesterday

12.  Other:  Lab certification questions for APHIS and the 10 lab system – how are the tests determined?  (Note the RS32 issue of recent history).  “What if we’re all using the wrong primers, even if they’re the ones in the approved protocol?”  Also, what about spreading the expertise (looking to the future and other pathogens).  Same labs every time?  If that happens, will leave some labs further and further behind.

 

Preliminary Plan of Work for SPDN Diagnostics Committee (Prepared by Jackie Mullen and Steve Vann after Consultation via Conference Call with the Following Diagnostics Committee Members:  Clarisssa Balbalian, Larry Barnes, Lyle Buss,  Chris Clark, Richard Cullen for Bob McGovern, Carrie Harmon, Carl Jones,  Peter Sforza for Eric Stromberg,  and one other committee member whose name I cannot read….my apologies!)

1. Satisfy the Charge of the Committee

Establish Minimum Diagnostics Capabilities List for LGU Plant Diagnostics Labs

Preliminary Minimum Capabilities for Diagnostics were established during a recent conference call on Feb. 9.  This list should be confirmed by the whole committee and probably by the SPDN representatives. 

The preliminary minimum diagnostic capabilities list is as follows:

1. Software Capabilities for communicating with the regional center.

2. Microscopy

3. Digital Imaging Capacity

4. Culturing Capability

5. Biolog or Gas Chromatography for bacterial id

6. Personnel - personnel needed to provide timely and accurate diagnostic service

                        7. Routine ELISA Kits when needed

                         8. Travel capabilities for training and meetings where diagnostic information is presented.

                 2. Develop Guidelines for Achieving Diagnostic Minimum Capabilities

Contact individual LGU diagnostic labs and/or SPDN representatives for a response concerning their individual needs.  Preliminary contacts have been made but contacts need to be confirmed and finalized in the next few weeks by SPDN representatives and their diagnostic lab personnel. ( See information given in second file for responses from individual states on needs.)

Guidelines for fulfilling Needs: 

Establish equipment, personnel, and travel (for meetings and trainings) needs for each state.

Prepare Proposed Flow Charts for Response Routes for Each State.  Definitive plans for this activity have not been formulated.

Possible SOP for packaging samples.  Definitive direction on these items has not been worked out.

Possible future conference calls to discuss diagnostic issues of concern related to SPDN