Our study investigating smoldering ‘hidden’ outbreaks of Zika in the Americas was published on the cover of Cell. In this paper we used travel surveillance and genomic epidemiology to answer a simple question – “in 2017, was the epidemic over?”. The short answer, is no – read the rest of the study for the long answer. The Zika epidemic in…
In two papers published in Cell and Cell Host Microbe together with our collaborators at VIC, CViSB, and VHFC we describe in detail antibody responses to Ebola virus. By systematic analysis of a large set of more than 170 monoclonal antibodies to Ebola virus, we investigated which immunological features play key roles in protection against the virus. This was our first…
Over the past 15 years, outbreaks caused by viruses such as Ebola, SARS, and Zika have cost governments billions of US dollars. Combined with a perception among scientists, health workers and citizens that responses to outbreaks have been inadequate, this has fueled what seems like a compelling idea. Namely, that if researchers can identify the next pandemic virus before the…
Hereditary xerocytosis is thought to be a rare genetic condition characterized by red blood cell (RBC) dehydration with mild hemolysis. RBC dehydration is linked to reduced Plasmodium infection in vitro; however, the role of RBC dehydration in protection against malaria in vivo is unknown. Most cases of hereditary xerocytosis are associated with gain-of-function mutations in PIEZO1, a mechanically activated ion channel. We…
The emergence and spread of Zika virus in the Americas continues to challenge our disease surveillance systems. Virus genome sequencing during the epidemic uncovered the timescale of Zika virus transmission and spread. Yet, we are only beginning to explore how genomics can enhance our responses to emerging viruses. Together with our colleagues Nuno Faria and Oliver Pybus at the University…
In a series of papers in the journals Nature and Nature Protocols, we used Zika virus sequencing from patients and mosquitos to show how the virus has spread across South America and into Florida. This work was performed as a large (huge!) collaboration of national and international institutions, which was made possible because of open science and open data.
In a recent study published in Cell together with colleagues from UMass Worcester and the Broad, we show how a single mutation that occurred during the 2013-2016 Ebola virus disease epidemic in West Africa increased the ability of the virus to infect human cells. The mutation occurred in the Ebola virus glycoprotein and is located in the receptor binding domain of…
The 2013-2016 Ebola epidemic in West Africa was of unprecedented size and devastation, but also stands a landmark for infectious disease genomics. By sequencing virus genomes directly from patient samples, scientists are now able to investigate how viruses evolve, transmit between individuals, and spread across country borders during outbreaks, directly informing infection control.
