Award of COVID-19 Sequencing of Wastewater – Bioinformatics and Reporting

Tender description

Wastewater Monitoring is an important source of SARS-CoV-2 data in the absence of mass community testing. Wastewater samples are helping to build a picture of SARS-CoV-2 prevalence and can provide information about what variants are circulating in Scotland and at what levels. This procurement supports the delivery of genomic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 RNA found in wastewater samples which is used to confirm the presence of individual variants of SARS-CoV-2 and supports the tracking of identified Variants of Concern (VOCs). Changes are detected quickly in wastewater, with evidence that these changes are mirrored in hospital cases in some circumstances, meaning it can act as an early warning for potential additional pressures on healthcare systems as well as tracking the spread of VOCs within the population.