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The laboratories’ research activities

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Reference activities

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ANSES’s services

To carry out its research and reference missions, ANSES relies on a network of nine laboratories on 16 sites across the country, in close contact with France’s agricultural and food production centres.

These laboratories undertake work in three major areas, covering animal health and welfare, chemical and microbiological food safety, and plant health. They have achieved international recognition in their various fields of expertise, including epidemiology, microbiology, antimicrobial resistance and physico-chemical contaminants and toxins.

The laboratories play a vital role in qualifying health hazards through their expert appraisals, epidemiological surveillance, alerts and technical and scientific support, and by coordinating networks of laboratories conducting field analyses, through which they collect data. In particular, the 600 scientists and technicians from ANSES laboratories are engaged in research to identify major pathogens in animal health and plant health and to develop approaches for identifying biological, physical and chemical contaminants in food and water.

These reference and research activities position ANSES at the heart of institutional networks focused on animal health and welfare, plant health and food safety. The Agency entertains direct links with the field, which are essential for carrying out surveillance and issuing alerts, enabling it to respond more rapidly during the resurgence or emergence of new pathogens and contaminants in France.

>> See ANSES’s scientific priorities for 2019–2022 to guide its research and reference activities (PDF, in French)

Laboratory news

Listeria monocytogenes: a surprisingly adaptive bacterium
Listéria bactérie
14/09/2023

Listeria monocytogenes: a surprisingly adaptive bacterium

Listeria monocytogenes is a ubiquitous bacterium found in food, livestock and wild animals, soil, water and vegetation. The European ListAdapt project focused on the ability of strains of this bacterium to adapt to these different environments. It found that this ability is independent of the strains' environments of origin or their belonging to a given sub-group.
SARS-CoV-2: a vaccine candidate effective against all variants
SARS-CoV-2 : une piste de vaccin efficace contre tous les variants
08/09/2023

SARS-CoV-2: a vaccine candidate effective against all variants

ANSES has taken part in preclinical trials of a potential vaccine against sarbecoviruses, the coronaviruses responsible for severe acute respiratory syndrome. In hamsters, this vaccine was equally effective against all the SARS-CoV-2 variants studied. These results suggest the potential for vaccines whose protection does not diminish with the appearance of new SARS-CoV-2 variants or new sarbecoviruses.
MATRIX: working together to improve surveillance of foodborne pathogens in the EU
Matrix
26/07/2023

MATRIX: working together to improve surveillance of foodborne pathogens in the EU

A multitude of players are involved in the surveillance of pathogenic bacteria that can be transmitted through food, from farm to fork. The European MATRIX project, which has just come to an end, sought to improve collaboration between the various bodies involved in the surveillance systems set up in each European country.
New knowledge of emerging Brucella bacteria
Des bactéries du genre brucella
13/06/2023

New knowledge of emerging Brucella bacteria

Many discoveries about bacteria of the Brucella genus have been made in recent years: new species have been discovered, others that were already known have been detected in animals not known to carry these bacteria, and species such as Brucella canis are emerging in Western Europe. Could these bacteria be transmitted to humans? Which animal species are concerned? How can these bacteria be distinguished from each other? These questions were the focus of the European IDEMBRU project, coordinated by ANSES as part of the One Health EJP programme.
A faster and more economical way of investigating the origin of listeriosis
Vue d'artiste d'une double hélice d'ADN
07/06/2023

A faster and more economical way of investigating the origin of listeriosis

ANSES has developed a PCR test for the rapid and inexpensive identification of Listeria monocytogenes strains causing foodborne infections, in collaboration with food safety laboratories in several other European countries. This test has already been used in some countries to investigate the origin of human cases of listeriosis.