Article 15 F1

to coordinate, in consultation with the Commission, the methods employed in the Member States for diagnosing Newcastle disease, specifically by:

1. (i)

   typing, storing and supplying strains of Newcastle disease virus for serological tests and the preparation of antisera;

2. (ii)

   supplying standard sera and other reference reagents to the national reference laboratories in order to standardise the tests and reagents used in the Member States;

3. (iii)

   building up and retaining a collection of Newcastle disease virus strains and isolates;

4. (iv)

   organising periodical comparative tests of diagnostic procedures at Union level;

5. (v)

   collecting and collating data and information on the methods of diagnosis used and the results of tests carried out in the Union;

6. (vi)

   characterising isolates of Newcastle disease viruses by the most up-to-date methods available to promote a greater understanding of the epidemiology of Newcastle disease;

7. (vii)

   keeping abreast of developments in Newcastle disease surveillance, epidemiology and prevention throughout the world;

8. (viii)

   retaining expertise on Newcastle disease virus and other pertinent viruses to enable a rapid differential diagnosis;

9. (ix)

   acquiring a thorough knowledge of the preparation and use of the products of veterinary immunology used to eradicate and control Newcastle disease;

to actively assist in the diagnosis of outbreaks of Newcastle disease in Member States by receiving virus isolates for confirmatory diagnosis, characterisation and epidemiology studies;

to facilitate the training or retraining of experts in laboratory diagnosis with a view to the harmonisation of techniques throughout the Union.