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Distinguished Speaker Seminar Series in Infectious Disease
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Spring 2022 Seminar Schedule
Tuesdays at 12:30pm – 1:00pm
Zoom: https://virginiatech.zoom.us/j/89419666443
Recorded seminars are available for viewing on our website HERE
January 18, 2022:
Jaline Gerardin, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Northwestern University
"Mathematical modeling to inform malaria policy"
January 25, 2022:
Nick W. Ruktanonchai, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Department of Population Health Sciences, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine
"Using human mobility data to predict and control infectious disease spread"
February 1, 2022:
Speaker: Andrew Lowell Ph.D. , Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, and Anne M. Brown Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry
"Overcoming AMR through antibiotic redesign: Coupling computational and experimental science"
February 8, 2022:
Ben Hause, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, South Dakota State University
"Metagenomic sequencing for virus discovery and characterization"
February 15, 2022:
Kim Seed, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, UC Berkeley
"Fighting with phages: how epidemic Vibrio cholerae defends against viral attack"
February 22, 2022:
Robyn Klein, Ph.D. The Robert E. and Louise F. Dunn Distinguished Professor of Medical Sciences, Director of the Center for Neuroimmunology and Neuroinfectious Diseases, and Professor of Medicine, Pathology and Immunology, and Neurosciences, Washington University School of Medicine
"Emerging RNA viruses and neurologic sequelae"
March 1, 2022:
Jeff Freeman, Ph.D. Senior Professional Staff in the National Health Mission Area of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab
March 15, 2022:
Xinhua Chen, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
March 22, 2022:
James Weger-Lucarelli, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine
March 29, 2022:
Townsend Peterson, Ph.D. University Distinguished Professor, Biodiversity Institute, The University of Kansas
April 5, 2022:
Eva Harris, Ph.D. Professor of Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology, UC Berkeley
April 12, 2022:
Rhoel Dinglasan, Ph.D. Professor of Infectious Diseases and Director of the CDC Southeastern Regional Center of Excellence in Vector Borne Diseases
April 19, , 2022:
Stacey Schultz-Cherry, Ph.D. Deputy Director, World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza in Animals and Birds,
April 26,, 2022:
Oliver Fregoso, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, UCLA
May 3, 2022:
Nancy Keller, Ph.D. Professor of Medical Microbiology and Immunology and Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
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Human norovirus animal model essential for vaccine development
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Human noroviruses are the most common cause of acute gastroenteritis and represent an incredibly high burden on the healthcare sector. Currently no vaccines or drugs exist to prevent or treat the disease. This is in part due to a lack of animal models. Here, Dr Lijuan Yuan and the team at Virginia Tech developed and validated gnotobiotic pigs as an animal model for the human norovirus GII.4/2003 Cin-2. Determining dose-response relationships as well as the median infectious dose, by using different statistical approaches for this virus, means we are one step closer on the path to vaccine development. READ MORE>>
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Ron Fricker selected to serve as vice provost for faculty affairs
Ron Fricker, interim dean of the College of Science and professor of statistics, has been named vice provost for faculty affairs at Virginia Tech.
During the pandemic, Fricker applied his disease surveillance expertise with Laura Hungerford, head of the Department of Population Health Sciences, to co-lead a multidisciplinary team of Virginia Tech faculty, students, and analysts who have spent the past 18 months building models to help the university understand how COVID-19 could impact the campus. READ MORE>>
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Leigh-Anne Krometis received UCOWR mid-career award for applied research
The Universities Council on Water Resources (UCOWR) has selected Dr. Leigh-Anne Krometis to receive the 2022 UCOWR Mid-Career Award for Applied Research. READ MORE>>
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COVID-19 Outreach Activities by CeZAP Affiliated Faculty
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COVID-19 Publications by CeZAP Affiliated Faculty
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SARS-CoV-2 virus transfers to skin through contact with contaminated solids Behzadinasab S, Chin A, Hosseini M, Poom L, Ducker WA. Sci Rep DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-00843-0
Requirements for the containment of COVID-19 disease outbreaks through periodic testing, isolation, and quarantine Mukhamadiarov R, Den gS, Serrao S Prianka Childs L, Tauber U. J. Phys. A Math Theor. DOI: 10.1088/1751-8121/ac3fc3
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COVID-19 Seroprevalence in Canada ModellingWaning and Boosting COVID-19 Immunity in Canada a Canadian Immunization Research Network Study Dick, DW; Childs, L, Feng Z, Li J, Rost G, Buckeridge DL, Ogden NH, Heffernan JM. Vaccines 10.3390/vaccines10010017
SARS-CoV-2 on Surfaces and HVAC Filters in Dormitory Rooms Pan J, Hawks S, Prussin II A, Duggal NK, Marr LC. Environ Sci Technol Lett DOI: 10.1021/acs.estlett.1c00892
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Omicron variant, mental health, masks discussed during public health panel
CeZAP Affiliated faculty member Linsey Marr joins other experts for an online conversation on the university's public health strategies at the start of the spring semester.
READ MORE>>
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Tackling the COVID-19 pandemic in the interdisciplinary classrooms
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Rarely has one aspect of daily living escaped the COVID-19 pandemic. This global event is very personal. So personal that people want to know more about the looming, ever-changing virus. Good information, though, is not always clear and accessible. Faculty at Virginia Tech have offered in-depth classes specifically about the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I really wanted the students to understand that scientific problems don’t fit into disciplinary categories,” said Draghi, an affiliated faculty member of the Fralin Life Sciences Institute and the Center for Emerging, Zoonotic and Arthropod-borne Pathogens (CeZAP). “They don’t fit into the separate boxes that we put them in. We wanted them to see what a scientific endeavor looks like in real time and not what the textbook summary of it looks like after the fact.”
This cross-disciplinary framework mirrors another COVID-19 class taught during the 2021 fall semester by Kylene Kehn-Hall, associate director of CeZAP and professor from the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology in the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine.
Designed as part of CeZAP’s Interdisciplinary Graduate Education Program in Infectious Disease, the graduate course featured a diverse range of faculty members delivering a lecture every week. READ MORE>>
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Recent Publications by CeZAP Affiliated Faculty
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Insecticide-treated livestock: a potential One Health approach to malaria control in Africa Ruiz-Castillo P, Rist C, Rabinovich R, Chaccour C Trends in Parasitology
DOI:10.1016/j.pt.2021.09.006
Modeling the effects of Aedes segypti's larval environment on adult body mass as emergence Walker M, Chandrasegaran K, Vinauger C, Robert M, Childs L. PLoS Comput Biol DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1009102
Protection generated by prior exposure to pathogens depends on both priming and challenge dose Weitzman C, Ceja G, Leon A, Hawley D. Infect Immun DOI: 10.1128/IAI.00537-21
First Evidence of Powassan Virus (Flaviviridae) in Ixodes Scapularis in Appalachian Virginia, USA Crumbie A, Whitlow A, Eastwood G. Am J Trop Med Hyg DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.21-0825
West Nile Virus Vaccination Protects against Usutu Virus Disease in Mice Salgado R, Hawks S, Frere F, Vazquez A, Huang C, Duggal NK. Viruses DOI: 10.3390/v13122352
Tenents of a holistic approach to drinking water-associated pathogen research, management, and communication Proctor C, Garner E, Hamilton K, Ashbolt N, Caverly L, Falkinham JO3rd, Haas Cn, Prevost M, Prevots DR, Pruden A, Raskin L, Stout J, Haig SJ. Water Res DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2021.117997
"The Most Disastrous and Fatal Epidemic": Mortality Statistics During the 1890 Russian Influenza Epidemic in Connecticut Ewing ET. Pub Health Rep DOI: 10.1177/00333549211000305
Predicting the growth of the amphibian chytrid fungus in varying temperature environments Gajewski Z, Stevenson L, Pike D, Roznik E, Alford R, Johnson L. Ecol Evol
DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8379
Genetic suppression meets structure prediction: probing a spore germination receptor complex Moir A, Popham D, J Bacteriol DOI: 10.1128/JB.00579-21
Host traits and environment interact to determine persistence of bat populations impacted by white-nose syndrome Grimaudo A, Hoyt J, Yamada S, Herzog C, Bennett A, Langwig K. Ecol Lett
DOI: 10.1111/ele.13942
Phylogenetic Signal, Congruence, and Uncertainty across Bacteria and Archaea Martinez-Gutierrez C, Aylward F. Mol Biol Evol DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msab254
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Potential impact of 5 years of ivermectin mass drug administration on malaria outcomes in high burden countries Marathe, A., Shi, R., Mendez-Lopez, A., Hu, Z., Lewis, B., Rabinovich, R., Chaccour, C.J. and Rist, C. BMJ Global Health
DOI: 10.1136/bmjgh-2021-006424
The unusual cell wall of the Lyme disease spirochaete Borrelia burgdorferi is shaped by a tick sugar DeHart T, Kushelman M, Hildreth S, Helm R, Jutras B. Nat Microbiol DOI: 10.1038/s41564-021-01003-w
Origin of Pathogens of Grapevine Crown Gall Disease in Hokkaido in Japan as Characterized by Molecular Epidemiology of Allorhizobium visis Strains Kawaguchi A, Sone T, Ochi S, Matsushita Y, Noutoshi Y, Nita M. Life (Basel) DOI: 10.3390/life11111265
Draft Genome Sequence of Mortierella alpina Strain LL118, Isolated from an Aspen (Populus tremuloides) Leaf Litter Sample Yang S, Vinatzer B. Microbiol Resour Announc DOI: 10.1128/MRA.00864-21
Historical forest disturbance mediates soil microbial community responses to drought Osburn E, Badgley B, Aylward F, Barrett J. Eviron Microbiol DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.15706
Emergent properties of microbial communities drive accelerated biogeochemical cycling in disturbed temperate forests Osburn E, Badgley B, Strahm B, Aylward F, Barrett J. Ecology DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3553
Testing new compounds for efficacy against Varroa destructor and safety to honey bees (Apis Mellifera) Jack C, Kleckner K, Demares F, Rault L, Anderson T, Carlier P, Bloomquist J, Ellis J. Pest Manag Sci DOI: 10.1002/ps.6617
Rift Valley fever virus Gn V5-epitope tagged virus enables identification of UBR4 as a Gn interacting protein that facilitates Rift Valley fever virus production Bracce N, de la Fuente C Saleem S, Pinkham C, Narayanan A, Garcia-Sastre A, Balaraman V, Richt J, Wilson W. Kehn-Hall K. Virology DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2021.12.010
Dithiocarbamates effectively inhibit the a-carbonic anhydrase from Neisseria gonorrhoeae Giovannuzzi S, Abutaleb N, Hewitt C, Carta F, Nocentini A, Seleem M, Flaherty D, Supuran C. J Enzyme Inhib Med Chem DOI: 10.1080/14756366.2021.1988945
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Recent Research Grants Awarded to CeZAP Affiliated Faculty
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- USDA-APHIS "Surveillance test development for Theileria orientalis Ikeda" genotype $90,640
A pathogenic genotype of Theileria orientalis, a protozoan parasite of cattle, was detected in Virginia in 2017. Since that time surveys of cattle going through Virginia sale barns have shown a prevalence increase from 2% in 2018 to 8% in 2019, and approximately 21% in 2020. This parasite has no approved treatment and causes clinical signs and symptoms similar to Anaplasma marginale with mortality rates ranging from 1-25% in naïve cattle in Virginia. In Australia, which first identified the pathogen within its borders in 2006, the estimated annual cost of this disease is $20 million. The pathogen is primarily transmitted by the Asian Longhorned tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis, which was concurrently identified with the first case of Ikeda in Virginia. Ikeda has been identified in 30 counties in Virginia and in the surrounding states of West Virginia, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Maryland and Kansas, but further surveillance is needed to follow the spread of the pathogen as well as its association with the Asian Longhorned tick. Our lab has validated a realtime PCR assay which will differentiate genotypes of T. orientalis and identify acute and persistent infection. However, with the high proportion of cattle persistently infected with Ikeda, more economical assays as well as assays that will identify only acute infection are needed. In addition, recent work has demonstrated that sheep may be a possible carrier of this pathogen indicating initial investigation of sheep as a reservoir for infection is needed. Therefore, we will continue surveillance and improve currently available diagnostics.
- USDA-NIFA "Development of a safe and effective nanoparticle-based vaccine against porcine epidemic diarrhea virus" $630,000
- PIs Mike Zhang & X.J. Meng
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The Infectious Disease Interdisciplinary Graduate Education Program (ID IGEP) offers graduate students the opportunity to get involved in remarkably diverse research approaches and topics, such as SARS-COV-2 vaccines, antiviral therapies, and tick-borne diseases.
The program will train PhD students that select to work in a home laboratory from the over 110 faculty members in 7 colleges and 31 departments affiliated with the Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-borne Pathogens (CeZAP). READ MORE>>
Are you a graduate student working with an ID IGEP faculty member, having research interest related to infectious disease topics, and in good academic standing?
Apply to become an affiliated member of the ID IGEP community by completing a short survey HERE
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COVID-19 infections among deer populations risk wildlife conservation efforts, says wildlife epidemiologist
Virginia Tech wildlife epidemiologist and conservation expert Luis Escobar says that while the role of deer as a source of COVID-19 infections to humans is unclear, wildlife conservation efforts are also at risk.
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Potential target for treating and diagnosing Lyme disease discovered
Virginia Tech researchers discovered that the bacterium that causes Lyme disease has a highly unusual modification in its protective molecular bag – its peptidoglycan, which is common to all bacteria. READ MORE>>
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Combating Antimicrobial Resistance NSF Research Traineeship (NRT)
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Friday, Jan 14, the Combating Antimicrobial Resistance NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) convened a virtual meeting of over 40 graduate students, faculty, affiliates, and prospective students to kick off a $3M NSF-funded PhD training grant. Participants joined from across campus and around the globe (The Netherlands, Botswana, Iran) to learn about the grand challenge that antimicrobial resistance poses to society and the importance of stakeholder engagement in developing solutions. Collaborators at Florida A&M University were also able to join. Guest speakers included Dean of the Graduate School, Aimée Surprenant, and Gregory Szwartz, Deloitte Life Sciences Data Science Practice Lead. Participants learned about promises and pitfalls of harnessing sewage monitoring and data science to identify antimicrobial resistance problems in communities and engaged in a stakeholder simulation exercise. You can learn more about the program and express your interest HERE
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Researchers find whimsy at the nano scale
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At extremely small scales, looks can be deceiving. While at first glance you might see lily pads floating on a tranquil pond, this image is actually a clever adaptation of a snapshot taken on a scanning electron microscope.
In reality, the green spots are only a few micrometers across – smaller than the width of a human hair. They make up a surface coating that was developed to limit the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The coating is composed of a silver-based material applied to a glass surface. The lotus flower, though, was some added artistic flair courtesy of image-editing software.
Mohsen Hosseini, Ph.D. candidate in chemical engineering, and William Ducker, professor of chemical engineering, recently won an award in the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI) image contest with this image.
The development of the protective surface coating began more than a year ago, when the coronavirus pandemic was in its early stages. The coating they produced can successfully inactivate the virus (SARS-CoV-2) when it lands on a solid surface, so that when a person later touches the surface, the virus is unable to infect them. READ MORE>>
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To Foster and Promote a Cohesive and Synergistic Environment for Interdisciplinary and Collaborative Research
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