ARTIC Network

The ARTIC network aims to enhance outbreak and epidemic response through real-time viral genome sequencing.

About ARTIC 2

The ARTIC network was initially developed for high-consequence viruses like Ebola, and the ARTIC protocol proved crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic, facilitating rapid SARS-CoV-2 sequencing and global dissemination. ARTIC 2.0, which began in 2025, significantly broadens the scope to include endemic human pathogens, arthropod-borne viruses and zoonotic viruses as well as challenging new threats like the spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

ARTIC 2.0 enhances our ability to conduct responsive investigations of unusual or concerning changes in the pattern of infectious disease anywhere in the world by leveraging new tools such as metagenomics. This could be a cluster of hemorrhagic fever of unknown aetiology but equally a spike of incidence in a known endemic arbovirus or childhood viral disease like measles. What links these events is that the investigations must be sufficiently rapid that the information acquired can lead to effective response. ARTIC 2.0 is creating a fully equipped toolbox where a robust, low-cost and accessible set of tools, that make use of the same equipment, reagents and bioinformatics, are ready to be rapidly applied to a wide range of investigations guided by an extensive knowledge base and flexible analysis pipelines.

Funding

The ARTIC project is funded by the Wellcome Trust through a Discretionary Award (313694/Z/24/Z) since 2025. This continues the support from the original ARTIC 1 project (Wellcome Trust Collaborators Award 206298/Z/17/Z, 2017-2025).

Partner Institutions

ARTIC 2.0 is a global collaboration involving eight partner institutions:

  • University of Birmingham, United Kingdom - Institute of Microbiology and Infection
  • University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom - Institute of Ecology and Evolution
  • University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
  • West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP), University of Ghana, Ghana
  • Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB), Democratic Republic of Congo
  • Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Switzerland
  • Simon Fraser University, Canada
  • KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Kenya

Learn more about our partner institutions, team members and collaborators.