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Public Health Science Testing Overview
As New York's public health laboratory, Wadsworth Center scientists diagnose diseases of public health importance, develop rapid, molecular-based tests for detecting pathogens, including biothreat agents, and perform complex, reference-level tests not readily available elsewhere. They also determine the presence and concentration of environmental toxicants, and explore the relationship between exposure and disease. The Center's largest testing program screens all the state's newborns for 45 congenital disorders.
Wadsworth Center is:
- One of six regional laboratories designated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for DNA fingerprinting of tuberculosis strains for epidemiological investigations
- One of ten regional laboratories designated by the CDC for biomonitoring of chemical threat agents, toxicants and their metabolites
- One of ten states in the CDC Emerging Infections Program for surveillance, improved lab capacity, prevention and control of emerging infectious diseases