Evolutionary Epidemiology Research Group - Professor Christophe Fraser
We take a unified view of the epidemiology and evolution of pathogens, driven by complex underlying patterns of host-host, host-pathogen and pathogen-pathogen interactions that require careful disentangling.
We use a spectrum of tools ranging from simple mathematical models to complex computer simulations, never in isolation, but always interacting with microbiologists, basic medical scientists and public health professionals.
We are affiliated to the MRC Centre for Outbreak Analysis, and work on applied epidemic modelling. Current topics of interest for our research group include: HIV Evolution; Bacterial Phylodynamics; Influenza Epidemiology; Outbreak Analysis.
Selected topics
Group members
- Professor Christophe Fraser - Head of Group
- Dr Eric de Silva - EU funded Postdoc - Viral Phylodynamics
- Dr Lorenzo Pellis - MRC funded Postdoc - Mathematical Epidemiology
- Dr Anne Cori - MRC funded Postdoc - Outbreak Analysis
- Dr Camille Pelat - MRC funded Postdoc - Influenza Epidemiology
- George Shirreff - PhD Student - HIV Virulence
- Marcus Shepheard - PhD Student - Staphylococcus aureus Phylodynamics
- Sarah Deeny - PhD Student - Streptococcus pneumoniae Evolutionary Dynamics (now at the HPA)
News
Congratulations to Dr Katrina Lythgoe who has been awarded a Wellcome Trust Research Fellowship, and who will be joining the department in January 2011 for five years. She will be working with the Evolutionary Epidemiology group, and will be focussed on developing models of in-host pathogen dynamics, with particular emphasis on HIV, drug resistance, population structure, and recombination. Katrina has been the Editor of Trends in Ecology and Evolution for the last 7 years. Previous to that she worked on theories of the evolution of sex with Prof. Nick Barton and Prof. Andrew Read, bacteria-phage co-evolution with Prof. Lin Chao, and Trypanasome in-host dynamics with Prof. David Barry and Prof. Andrew Read.
Congratulations to Oliver Ratmann who has just been awarded a Sir Henry Wellcome Research Fellowship! From October 2010, he will work on uncovering determinants of eco-evo dynamics in rapidly evolving pathogens using new methods of Bayesian computation that build on his PhD thesis. He will share his time between the department at Imperial and Duke University, and while here will be affiliated with the Evolutionary Epidemiology group.
