VMERGE partners will be meeting in Rome next week to review the progress made by the project at its half way point.  The two day meeting will be hosted by the UN FAO in Rome.

The EU FP7 project which is focused on Emerging viral vector borne diseases will be covering a wide range of disciplines from Molecular/serology tools and vector competency to field collections, early warning approaches and transmission models.  Participants will be hoping to consolidate the multidisciplinary approach, maximising outputs going into the final stages of the project.

Since the launch of Vmerge, a research consortium to better understand Rift Valley Fever (RVF) and other vector borne diseases, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has been working towards increasing knowledge of RVF occurrence linked to the distribution and dynamics of competent vector populations in West Africa.

This new EU FP7 funded project intends to address the risk of emerging viral vector borne diseases in two main categories of arthropods known to transmit important animal and zoonotic diseases: mosquitoes (Aedes and Culex), and Culicoides biting midges. A research proposal targeting potential emerging viral disease risks related to these vectors will be carried out through original and integrated multidisciplinary approaches including: