Genomic centre sought to tackle drug-resistant TB
A European project is procuring a sequencing centre to deliver real-time whole genome data on drug-resistant tuberculosis, reflecting wider public investment in genomics.
A European project is procuring a sequencing centre to deliver real-time whole genome data on drug-resistant tuberculosis, reflecting wider public investment in genomics.
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In November 2025, Universiteit Antwerpen issued a contract notice to appoint a sequencing centre for a tuberculosis study in South Africa. The successful centre will be asked to build and optimise whole genome sequencing workflows for drug-resistant TB in KZN, handling sputum samples and producing both baseline and real-time genomic data. The move highlights how public research funding is turning to advanced sequencing as a central tool in the fight against infectious disease.
The new contract notice sets out a focused brief: to set up and optimise whole genome sequencing (WGS) workflows for drug-resistant tuberculosis in KZN. The scope covers processing sputum samples and generating two kinds of data – a baseline genomic dataset for the study and ongoing real-time WGS data as the work progresses.
While the notice gives only a high-level description, it implies an end-to-end role for the appointed sequencing centre. The provider will need to receive or process sputum samples, sequence TB genomes, and return usable data outputs to the research team. The emphasis on both baseline and real-time data suggests that the project is interested in understanding the genetic landscape of resistance at the start of the study as well as how it evolves over time.
By locating the study in KZN in South Africa, the procurement connects European academic expertise with a setting where drug-resistant TB is a pressing public health concern. Turning raw sputum into reliable genomic data in such a context demands robust protocols, consistent quality control and clear data workflows between clinical sites and the sequencing centre.
Whole genome sequencing workflows for TB are technically demanding. Sputum samples can be complex to handle, and Mycobacterium tuberculosis has a tough cell wall that makes extracting high-quality DNA more challenging than for many other bacteria. Building a workflow that can cope with these realities, while still turning samples around quickly enough to be useful, is a significant task.
In practical terms, setting up WGS workflows usually means putting in place standardised steps for sample receipt, DNA extraction, library preparation, sequencing and bioinformatic analysis. For drug-resistant TB, the downstream analysis has to consistently identify mutations linked to resistance, and do so in a way that can be compared across many samples over time.
The notice’s requirement for both baseline and real-time WGS data points to two overlapping needs. A baseline dataset can underpin core analyses of how resistance is distributed across the study population at the outset. Real-time data, by contrast, is about speed as much as accuracy: it must be generated fast enough to support near-contemporaneous analysis, whether for research questions, surveillance signals or potential clinical insights within the study.
Designing workflows that are reproducible over months or years, yet flexible enough to accommodate changes in sample volume or updated analytic pipelines, is likely to be a key challenge for bidders. Although the notice does not detail volumes or timelines, the focus on real-time output indicates that responsiveness will matter as much as technical capability.
This TB-focused procurement sits within a broader pattern of public bodies using genomic and molecular tools to tackle infectious disease. Throughout 2025, several buyers across Europe flagged similar needs, especially around mycobacteria and viral infections.
In early November 2025, the Business Services Organisation Procurement and Logistics Service signalled its interest in mycobacterial genomics through a prior information notice on genotype testing for mycobacterium. That engagement aims to gauge supplier capacity and gather feedback ahead of a future procurement, underlining how demand for mycobacterial genotyping is spreading beyond specialist research labs.
Other contracting authorities have focused on integrating molecular diagnostics into routine hospital workflows. In August 2025, Uniwersytecki Szpital Kliniczny w Poznaniu launched a contract to buy tests for the genetic identification of viruses and Mycobacterium tuberculosis using real-time PCR, alongside leased equipment for its microbiology laboratory, through its procurement of genetic identification tests and equipment.
High-throughput, automated systems are also in demand. In July 2025, the health authorities of Land Baden-Württemberg issued a notice for an automated system for real-time PCR testing to support HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infection diagnostics, specifying throughput of more than 250 samples in eight hours and regular reagent supply.
Alongside instrumentation, there is sustained demand for the consumables that keep molecular diagnostics running. The CHU de la Martinique published a contract notice in August 2025 for the supply of medical laboratory reagents, including extraction kits, quality control materials and pathogen testing systems for its virology and molecular laboratories.
Taken together, these notices show how genomic and molecular approaches are moving from niche research into everyday infection control. The Universiteit Antwerpen TB study adds an explicitly research-focused layer, but it draws on many of the same technologies and capabilities that hospitals and public health laboratories are now buying for routine use.
The TB sequencing centre is also part of a much wider expansion of genomic capacity across medical disciplines. In May 2025, Uniwersytet Medyczny w Łodzi launched a contract for whole human genome sequencing services as part of a project to predict cancer risk and complications in children treated for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Here, WGS is positioned as a tool for understanding long-term treatment outcomes rather than infectious disease spread.
Newborn genomics is another emerging area. In August 2025, Genomics England issued a notice seeking long-read sequencing services for a national research study involving newborns, aiming to improve diagnosis and treatment of rare genetic conditions and to develop an enhanced longitudinal birth cohort. That procurement underlines how whole genome approaches are being considered at the very start of life.
At the same time, universities and research hospitals are investing in more specialised sequencing modalities. Semmelweis Egyetem in Hungary published a contract notice in May 2025 for single-cell sequencing services, covering 3’ transcriptome profiling, gene expression analysis, cDNA synthesis and initial software processing. In August 2025, Cell Therapy Catapult Limited went to market for high-throughput sequencing services to support the development of advanced therapy medicinal products, with requirements spanning bulk and single-cell RNA, AAV genome sequencing and data analysis support.
There is also growing demand for comprehensive sequencing service frameworks. In April 2025, Uppsala universitet issued a call for sequencing data services including single-cell RNA-seq library preparation, spatial transcriptomics, next generation sequencing and data analysis for colorectal cancer research. Here, as in the TB study, public buyers are looking for partners who can deliver integrated pipelines rather than isolated laboratory tasks.
The Universiteit Antwerpen TB procurement sits comfortably within this landscape: one more example of public-sector research shifting towards outsourced or collaborative sequencing solutions, while reserving in-house expertise for study design and interpretation.
For sequencing providers, these notices point to a market where technical diversity is an advantage. The TB study requires the capacity to handle sputum samples and produce both baseline and real-time data; other tenders stress throughput, automation, single-cell capabilities or long-read platforms. Suppliers able to offer reliable, documented workflows across different sample types and applications will be well-placed.
For public laboratories and universities, the pattern is one of selective investment. Some, like the hospitals in Poznań and Baden-Württemberg, are procuring equipment and tests to build in-house molecular capacity. Others, such as Uppsala University or Uniwersytet Medyczny w Łodzi, are buying in sequencing as a service for specific research programmes. The balance between these approaches will shape how genomic data is generated, stored and governed over the coming years.
The TB sequencing centre appointment may also serve as a test case for managing real-time genomic outputs across borders, between research teams and clinical sites. The notice does not detail data volumes, integration with local health systems or future reuse of the workflows, but these are likely to be important questions as similar projects emerge.
The immediate next step will be the appointment of a sequencing centre capable of delivering robust WGS workflows for drug-resistant TB in KZN. Observers will be watching how quickly baseline and real-time datasets can be established and how smoothly sample handling and data transfers operate in practice.
More broadly, the TB study is another marker of genomics becoming a standard expectation in public-sector research and, increasingly, clinical services. Future notices will show whether buyers move towards more consolidated, multi-pathogen genomic platforms, or continue to procure TB, HIV, oncology and other applications through separate, specialised contracts.
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