National Microbiology Laboratory: Professional services
On this page
- Overview
- Directorates within the National Microbiology Laboratory
- Networks
- National Microbiology Laboratory Science Plan 2024 to 2027
Overview
The National Microbiology Laboratory (NML) is a branch within the Public Health Agency of Canada and is known around the world for its scientific excellence. We work with public health partners in Canada and abroad to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
The NML is a central pillar of public health laboratory science in Canada.
Our activities are organized into 6 main areas:
- diagnostic and reference testing
- laboratory-based infectious disease surveillance
- emergency preparedness and response
- research
- leadership, training network, and capacity development
- laboratory science support services
Directorates within the National Microbiology Laboratory
Our directorates are made up of highly specialized scientists and technicians who provide expertise in a number of different fields. Public servants assist them by working in areas like:
- administrative support
- policy analysis
- human resources
- infrastructure maintenance
- information technology
Scientific reference and surveillance
The Science Reference and Surveillance Directorate provides leadership in diagnostic and reference services and laboratory responses to:
- prion diseases
- antimicrobial resistance
- sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections
- viral diseases such as influenza, measles and polio
- bacterial pathogens such as gonorrhea, streptococcus A and tuberculosis
- vector-borne diseases such as Lyme disease, West Nile Virus and Zika virus
- enteric (food-borne and water-borne) diseases, such as:
- E-coli
- Vibrio
- Listeria
- Shigella
- Salmonella
- Campylobacter
We also have 3 laboratory centres accredited by the World Health Organization to deal with particular viral diseases of international concern. These include the:
- National Influenza Centre (World Health Organization)
- Immunization (Pan American Health Organization)
- Measles and Rubella Laboratory Network (World Health Organization)
The directorate also provides leadership in:
- surveillance (including wastewater monitoring) and public health threats
- developing emergency and public health interventions
The directorate leads laboratory-based surveillance of public health threats, including:
- the tracking, diagnoses and control of zoonotic and other rare or emerging pathogens
- leadership in basic and applied research for development of new tools and technologies to support key branch functions
Learn more:
Scientific operations and response
The Scientific Operations and Response Directorate provides leadership to interdependent laboratory planning, preparedness and operational response functions, including:
- national and global health security
- biosafety and biosecurity
- public health informatics and geomatics
- intelligence and science IT infrastructure
Functions also include:
- mobilizable surge capacity and deployable field response capabilities
- lab-based infectious disease surveillance
- innovative research for highly infectious pathogens, such as Ebola virus disease
- NML site management, including establishment of the National Medical Countermeasures Laboratory
Medical and scientific affairs
The Medical and Scientific Affairs Directorate provides leadership in shared scientific expertise and technologies that enable the operational and research agenda of our disease programs. Through our relationships with partners within and beyond the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), these programs support our:
- stewardship of PHAC intellectual property
- national and international relationship management
- policy, quality and standards development and certification
The directorate's technical programs:
- support robust diagnostic and surveillance delivery by curating:
- technologies
- operations
- analytics
- standards
- manage collaboration between programs and across partners within government and beyond
- foster capability and capacity through research to increase effectiveness through:
- medical countermeasure development of safe and effective vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics
- developing and de-risking emerging microbiology technologies for routine at-scale use in 'omics, including genomics (DNA sequencing, genotyping and molecular-based analyses)
Networks
Canadian Public Health Laboratory Network
This national network of public health laboratory professionals provides a forum for public health laboratory leaders to:
- share knowledge and best practice
- standardize laboratory activities
It is home to a variety of networks and working groups that expedite:
- projects
- initiatives
- discussions
- response plans
The network champions rapid, coordinated nationwide laboratory response to emerging and re-emerging communicable diseases, such as:
- tick-borne diseases
- respiratory viruses, such as:
- SARS
- COVID-19
- seasonal influenza
- pandemic influenza
- sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections
Learn more:
Canadian Network for Public Health Intelligence
This secure, web-based network allows public health professionals to gather, analyze and share knowledge in real-time. This helps public health responders, decision-makers and researchers work together quickly and effectively. To date, the network has successfully developed an innovative public health informatics and bio surveillance platform established that includes a large number of applications, such as:
- a national disease-specific alerting system
- resource centres for local and global groups to collaborate
- purpose-built disease surveillance systems for human, animal and environmental health
- monitoring systems for infectious diseases or other threats to public health and safety
Learn more:
- Log in to the Canadian Network for Public Health Intelligence
- Canadian Network for Public Health Intelligence (infographic)
National Microbiology Laboratory Science Plan 2024 to 2027
Building on lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Microbiology Laboratory Science Plan 2024 to 2027 sets the strategic direction for our scientific activities. It sustainably integrates these lessons into our operations and improves our capacity to respond to current and future needs. The plan has a mission-driven approach, and identifies 4 mission areas. These areas represent broad scientific challenges to address and areas to focus additional efforts on over the next 3 years.
We consulted with internal and external experts to help define these mission areas and our goals. These consultations helped us verify that the plan reflects our collective vision and considers the challenges our partners face.
Through this process, we identified 4 mission areas:
- antimicrobial resistance
- climate-sensitive infectious diseases
- sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections
- emerging and novel pathogens
Moving forward, we'll expand on the plan's goals, and elaborate on how we'll advance these areas with our partners. With our collective efforts and partnerships, we'll continue to promote laboratory leadership, scientific excellence, and innovation to address public health concerns affecting people in Canada.
Use our contact form for inquiries to request a copy of the full plan