Well before the COVID-19 pandemic, health experts from around the world identified major gaps in global preparedness for infectious diseases. In the EU, among others, investment was made in life sciences research infrastructures and infectious disease networks that federate facilities offering scientists access to cutting-edge research services, and that could be mobilized in times of crisis.

As one of the first actions of the European Health Emergency preparedness and Response Authority (HERA), the ISIDORe programme, ”Integrated Services for Infectious Disease Outbreak Research”, was launched in 2022.

ISIDORe is a new approach to epidemic preparedness and response research in Europe. It assembles and provides free access to an unprecedented One Health-driven integrated portfolio of cutting-edge research resources, dedicated to the study of any epidemic-prone disease.

Coordinated by ERINHA (“European Research Infrastructure on Highly Pathogenic Agents”), ISIDORe involves all the major European Research Infrastructures and networks in the field of biomedical research, from the most fundamental (e.g. structural biology) to the most applied (e.g. vaccine development and clinical trials), including social sciences. The ISIDORe programme has two overarching goals: i) to support rapid research responses to outbreaks and epidemics and ii) to contribute to the preparedness to any epidemic-prone pathogen threat. In line with its goals, during its first year ISIDORe contributed to fighting the rise of the SARS-CoV-2 variants through its dedicated call for proposals, and advance Mpox research.

The preparedness programme supports research on the pathogens with epidemic potential from RG 4 pathogens (such as Marburg virus, Nipah virus, Hendra virus, Lassa virus, CCHF virus) to pathogen X, including respiratory pathogens and vector-borne pathogens. This mechanism enabled transdisciplinary projects to be conducted, to improve preparedness, and accelerate research and innovation during times of emergencies.

We aim at showcasing the results of ISIDORe-supported research projects and ongoing opportunities for free access.