Congress of the European Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians - EAVLD

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Glossary

1

ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay)

Plate-based antibody or antigen test used in veterinary serology and antigen detection; EAVLD congress sessions regularly cover ELISA validation, cut-off setting and cross-reactivity in animal matrices such as serum, milk and oral fluid.

2

PCR / real-time PCR (qPCR)

Nucleic acid amplification used for direct detection of viral, bacterial and parasitic agents in animal samples; the diagnostic mainstay discussed at veterinary laboratory meetings, including extraction controls, internal amplification controls and Ct-value interpretation.

3

Serology

Antibody or antigen testing of serum or plasma to establish exposure, immune status or herd prevalence, used in veterinary surveillance programmes for diseases such as brucellosis, bluetongue and avian influenza.

4

Bacteriology and AST

Culture isolation of bacterial pathogens followed by antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST), including disc diffusion and MIC methods that underpin veterinary treatment decisions and antimicrobial resistance monitoring.

5

Reference laboratory

A national or supranational laboratory that confirms equivocal results, supplies control reagents and sets diagnostic standards for a defined animal disease; many EAVLD delegates work in or with such institutes.

6

Proficiency testing / ring trial

External quality assessment in which participating veterinary laboratories test identical blinded samples and compare results; panels often cover PCR, serology and bacteriology and feed directly into accreditation evidence.

7

ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation

International standard for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories; veterinary diagnostic labs use it to document method validation, equipment calibration, staff competency and chain of custody for animal samples.

8

WOAH (World Organisation for Animal Health)

Intergovernmental body that publishes terrestrial and aquatic animal health codes and diagnostic manuals; its listed diseases and prescribed tests shape which assays veterinary laboratories must run and report.

9

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) surveillance

Structured collection and analysis of susceptibility data from animal isolates to track resistance trends; veterinary diagnostic laboratories supply the isolate-level data that national AMR monitoring programmes depend on.

10

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) and metagenomics

Untargeted or panel-based sequencing of pathogens directly from clinical or environmental animal samples, increasingly used for outbreak investigation, virus discovery and culture-independent diagnosis.

11

Biobank / sample archive

Curated, quality-controlled storage of animal sera, tissues, DNA and RNA with metadata, supporting retrospective validation studies, ring trials and longitudinal disease surveillance.

12

Biosecurity and biosafety levels

Facility and workflow rules that prevent pathogen escape or laboratory-acquired infection; veterinary laboratories handling zoonotic agents operate at BSL-2 or BSL-3 with dedicated sample-inactivation and waste protocols.

13

Notifiable (reportable) disease

An animal disease that laboratories must report to national veterinary authorities, often within hours; diagnostic confirmation pathways for these diseases are a recurring congress topic.

14

Laboratory information management system (LIMS)

Software that tracks sample registration, test assignment, results and reporting in a diagnostic laboratory; LIMS validation and data exchange with national animal health databases are practical congress themes.