NextGenAMR — a product by Vanguard Biotech Systems
Research & surveillance
VBS develops controlled bioinformatics infrastructure to organise whole-genome-sequencing workflows within its published scope, preserve provenance, structure AMR-related evidence and produce reviewable results. For research and surveillance, the value is reproducibility, consistency between runs, traceability, versioning, comparison and structured reporting.
NextGenAMR is a functional platform in controlled preview. Validation is ongoing, and the product is not presented as an autonomous diagnostic or treatment-decision system.
Current status
NextGenAMR is in controlled preview and validation; its scope is versioned and limited. It is not presented as an autonomous diagnosis or treatment-decision system. A research or surveillance collaboration is not a clinical licence or an authorisation for care use.
Within a published scope
NextGenAMR interprets antimicrobial resistance from whole-genome sequencing of bacterial isolates. In the current operational scope, the supported species is Escherichia coli, with a closed panel of 9 antibiotics (Amoxicillin–clavulanic acid, Ampicillin, Ciprofloxacin, Ceftazidime, Gentamicin, Meropenem, Nitrofurantoin, Piperacillin–tazobactam and Trimethoprim–sulfamethoxazole), each backed by a 6-model ensemble. The output is a calibrated resistance probability, never a categorical S/I/R result. It is in internal, non-clinical validation; it is not a diagnosis and not a regulatory-cleared medical device.
Why reproducible, controlled execution helps
Research and surveillance workflows often face avoidable sources of divergence. NextGenAMR can help study and organise these within its real scope — it does not claim existing tools or practices are inadequate.
- Divergence between component and database versions
- Manual handoffs between steps
- Heterogeneous, hard-to-compare outputs
- Difficulty reconstructing exactly how a run was produced
- Inconsistent reporting between analyses
Capabilities for research & surveillance
Each capability is labelled by its real state — implemented, available to evaluate, agreement-dependent or planned. Nothing here is presented as more mature than it is.
- Run provenanceImplemented
Each analysis records the context needed to understand and reconstruct how it was produced.
- Component & database versioningImplemented
Component and reference-database versions are recorded, so runs are comparable and reconstructable.
- Parameter recordsImplemented
The parameters of a run are captured as part of its record.
- Warnings & abstentionImplemented
The system surfaces warnings and can abstain rather than force a result — abstentions are never hidden.
- Structured outputsImplemented
Results are produced as structured, machine-readable outputs (JSON) alongside human-readable reports.
- Scope controlImplemented
Analysis is bounded to a versioned, published scope; the system does not answer outside it.
- Calibrated probability outputImplemented
Within scope the system reports a calibrated probability, never a categorical S/I/R interpretation.
- Comparison between runsAvailable to evaluate
Comparing runs and configurations is something a collaboration can explore against real data.
- Reporting structureAvailable to evaluate
Defining a reporting template for a research or surveillance workflow is something to shape together.
- Systems & platform integrationAgreement-dependent
Integration with sequencing platforms, storage, APIs or LIMS is assessed and agreed per project.
Ways to collaborate
Possibilities subject to an evaluation of fit, scope, data, resources, approvals and agreement.
A research group can study methodological reproducibility or compare configurations.
Start the conversation →A public-health body can explore structuring a surveillance workflow or its reporting.
Start the conversation →A sequencing centre can study input compatibility, handoff and integration feasibility.
Start the conversation →A consortium can evaluate a VBS contribution to a bioinformatics, provenance or AMR work package.
Start the conversation →A validation team can discuss protocols, cohorts, reference standards, endpoints, discordances and abstentions.
Start the conversation →
What VBS can bring
What VBS can bring
- The NextGenAMR platform within its published scope
- Workflow architecture, normalisation and orchestration
- Scope control and aggregation of evidence
- Provenance, versioning and abstention handling
- Structured outputs, reporting and interfaces
- Technical expertise and the ability to define controlled evaluations
What a collaborator normally brings
Depending on the project — not universal requirements.
- A defined research or project question
- Scientific and technical leads
- Legitimately accessible data, with provenance and quality information
- A reference standard when applicable
- Ethical or institutional approvals and transfer agreements
- Success criteria and the ability to review results
Possible outcomes
Deliverable-shaped possibilities — not promised results, publications, metrics or deployments.
- A defined protocol
- A feasibility assessment
- A dataset characterisation
- A reproducible analysis
- A provenance package
- A comparison of runs
- An integration feasibility assessment
- A reporting template
- A methodological result
- A technical contribution to a consortium
- A defined next phase
Start the conversation
Identify a collaboration modality and tell us about your project. No sensitive data is requested.