Understanding disease spread

What do you enjoy most about your PhD? 

I really enjoy having the freedom to plan my own experiments and my workload. I also like the fact that the research is always linear with one question. As the project progresses there are new questions based on findings and the project can evolve into something different.  

Could you share details of the journey that led to your PhD, including any experiences (professional, personal or educational) that have helped shape that path? 

I did my undergraduate degree in Veterinary Biosciences here at Surrey where I wrote a research grant proposal for my final year project. This was a great opportunity to learn how research is conducted and how questions and experiments are designed. Outside of education, I have always loved sports and exercise. Many of the characteristics that help me to balance my training with other commitments have also helped me during my PhD. 

Supervisors

• Professor Carlos Maluquer de Motes (University of Surrey)
• Professor Gill Elliott (University of Surrey)

What do you enjoy most about your PhD? 

I really like the intersection between fieldwork, lab work, mathematical modelling, and policy recommendations. The project takes a very detailed approach towards combining population dynamics, disease ecology, transmission modelling, and public health. I also find, there is a bit of a mystery solving aspect to how EBLV-1 got into serotines in the UK in the first place that I'm really excited to investigate. 

Could you share details of the journey that led to your PhD, including any experiences (professional, personal or educational) that have helped shape that path? 

I'm a Geneticist (B.Sc. University of Manchester and M.Sc. Trinity College Dublin) and Epidemiologist (M.Sc. University of Antwerp) by training. My expertise lies in modelling disease transmission and outbreak control as well as in the paleoepidemiology of viruses. Combined with my fieldwork experience with bats through conservation volunteering in Germany and Belgium, I became interested in how population dynamics and disease mechanisms interact with transmission dynamics in pathogen carrying bats. I have always taken One Health approaches to disease research and I'm really happy that it brought me to the Wessex One Health Doctoral Landscape Programme, the APHA, and the University of Sussex. 

What is your project about? 

EBLV-1 is primarily carried by serotine bats and was first identified in the UK in 2018. The aim of my project is to provide perspectives for control policies by using mathematical models of disease transmission and an investigation of population dynamics, in order to better understand how the virus became maintained in serotine populations and what this means for future preparedness and conservation efforts. 

Supervisors

• Professor Fiona Mathews (University of Sussex)
• Professor Pierre Nouvellet  (University of Sussex)
• Professor Dan Horton (APHA, The University of Surrey) 

What do you enjoy most about your PhD? 

The PhD pushes me to manage my own project, develop resilience, and think independently, which are invaluable skills that will benefit me in my future career.

Could you share details of the journey that led to your PhD, including any experiences (professional, personal or educational) that have helped shape that path? 

I studied Biomedical Science at undergraduate and carried out a placement year in an electrophysiology lab which sparked my interest in research. I then completed a masters in Molecular Biology and then went onto work in a high-capacity bioprocessing lab before starting the PhD.

Supervisors

• Professor Sandra Sacre (University of Sussex)
• Dr Ben Towler (University of Sussex)
• Professor Rachel Simmonds (University of Surrey)

What do you enjoy most about your PhD? 

I really enjoy that my PhD has a mixture of lab work and fieldwork as well as being multidisciplinary which has allowed me to expand my knowledge across multiple fields. I love the opportunities that have been provided by my PhD, notably training as a beekeeper but also developing my laboratory and bioinformatics skills in addition to acquiring new microbiology skills. The highlight of my PhD so far has been appearing on BBC's Countryfile which was an incredible experience to showcase my research. 

Could you share details of the journey that led to your PhD, including any experiences (professional, personal or educational) that have helped shape that path? 

During my BSc in Environmental Sciences, I discovered my passions lie with pollinating species; specifically, I was fascinated by the complexity of eusocial bees and recognised their vital global importance. My MRes in Evolutionary Biology furthered my biological understanding and allowed me to develop my research skills. The highlights of both these degrees were the overseas fieldwork opportunities, reinforcing my love of working in nature.  After, I worked as a research entomologist with a focus on invasive bark beetles. I was responsible for rearing quarantine insects and carrying out host specificity development trials in the lab and in the field, overseas in regions endemic to these species. I also undertook fieldwork in the UK, monitoring an extensive insect trapping network across the country. My desire to progress in the field of research led to my PhD which combines my entomological passions as well as exciting new disciplines to me.  

Supervisors

• Dr Jorge Gutierrez-Merino (University of Surrey)
• Will Wilkinson (University of Surrey)
• Professor Claudio Avignone Rossa (University of Surrey)
• Dr Beth Nicholls (University of Sussex)

What do you enjoy most about your PhD? 

I am really enjoying learning more about ecology, as it plays a fundamental role in the epidemiology of infectious diseases. Understanding animal movement, dispersal patterns, and social interactions has been especially exciting, as these ecological processes help explain how pathogens spread in real-world systems. This integration of ecology and disease dynamics is what I find most rewarding in my PhD. 

Could you share details of the journey that led to your PhD, including any experiences (professional, personal or educational) that have helped shape that path?

I grew up in rural Brazil, surrounded by wildlife, which inspired me to become a wildlife veterinarian. After graduating, I completed a residency specialisation program in Wildlife Medicine and Conservation, where I worked in a rehabilitation centre with mostly trafficked and rescued wild animals. From there, I started working in a Brazilian zoo where I worked with  a broad range of species, contributed to preventive medicine programmes, followed up on disease outbreaks (inside and outside the zoo) and carried out extensive necropsy and diagnostic work in collaboration with a leading wildlife pathology team (SAP-UFRRJ) and other conservation groups. Realising the impact of infectious diseases on conservation, I pursued a Master’s in Zoonoses and One Health in UAB, Barcelona, Spain, where I investigated Echinococcus spp. in wild carnivores from the northeastern region of the country with IRTA-CRESA (Animal Health Research Centre). This led me to the in the Wessex One Health PhD programme. Here I have been able to gain more experience in epidemiology and gain more hands-on experience with infectious diseases, with major impact in animal, human and environmental health. 

My current PhD project aims to understand the impact of gamebird releases on wild bird populations and avian influenza dynamics in the UK, using both theoretical and data driven approaches to provide evidence and recommendations for mitigating pathogen risk.

Supervisors

• Professor Pierre Nouvellet (University of Sussex)
• Ashley Banyard (APHA)
• James Aegerter (APHA)

Supervisors

• Professor Simon Waddell (University of Sussex)
• Simon Clark (UKHSA) 

What do you enjoy most about your PhD? 

Wessex One Health DLA allows me to engage with interdisciplinary teams across two leading institutions, as well as utilising innovative technology to advance understanding surrounding the evolutionary genetics of Bacillus anthracis and approach this research with a One Health perspective, an ideal which has always been, and continues to be, my main motivation behind my work.

Could you share details of the journey that led to your PhD, including any experiences (professional, personal or educational) that have helped shape that path? 

Following my MBio Degree at the University of Warwick in Biomedical Sciences, I moved straight onto the Wessex One Health Doctoral Landscape Award. I have always been interested in pursuing research in microbial genetics and genomics. 

Supervisors

• Adam Eyre-Walker (University of Sussex)
• Steven Pullan (UKHSA)

Supervisors

• Dr Leena Al-Hassan (University of Sussex)
• Paz Aranega Bou (UKHSA)

Supervisors

• David King (Dstl)
• Professor Carlos Maluquer (University of Surrey)

What do you enjoy most about your PhD ?

I love the fact that my research problem is relevant and applicable to real world problems. Working in a transdisciplinary field has opened my eyes to a diverse range of research methods and world views and has led me to question my own assumed objectivity.  I have already collaborated with people from many different disciplines and am consistently challenged and inspired to think differently, to hold space for diverse perspectives and notice the hidden connections that drive many of the outcomes in One Health and beyond. 

Could you share details of the journey that led to your PhD, including any experiences (professional, personal or educational) that have helped shape that path?

I have been a vet in farm animal practice since 1993 - alongside a role as a lecturer at Surrey University Vet School and a consultant in sustainability within the veterinary sector. A PhD was not something I'd really considered - I have a large family and went straight from university into practice- working in the UK and abroad. Having worked in the countryside for my whole career and delivered projects for government and industry, I was very aware of the unintended consequences of many policy decisions and the complexity of the global systems in which I was operating. 

I authored two training courses for vets, around sustainability in agriculture and livestock emissions and during that process was asked to contribute a chapter on leadership and behaviour change. Through that process I began to realise that imparting knowledge "onto" farmers was unlikely to deliver long term meaningful change in practices and started to explore some of the hidden drivers that may be driving poor outcomes at a farm and a policy level. 

A PhD was not something I'd considered at this stage in my career, but a discussion with fellow academics around the coffee table inspired me to apply for this project and I was very happy to be offered the studentship. Many of my professional and personal roles and interests are directly applicable to this exciting project and I am very much looking forward to working with groups of stakeholders to deliver a project that I believe will have the potential for real positive impact in One Health. 

Supervisors

• Dr Elizabeth Mumford (University of Surrey)
• Emma Snary (APHA)

Supervisors

• Dr Jennifer Ritchie (University of Surrey)
• Claire Jenkins (UKHSA)

Supervisors

• Dr Jane Edwards (The Pirbright Institute)
• Professor Falko Steinbach (University of Surrey)

Supervisors

• Dr Eduarda Santos (University of Exeter)
• Miriam Jacobs (UKHSA)

Supervisors

• Dr Barbara Tschirren (University of Exeter)
• Dr Jolyon Medlock (UKHSA)

Supervisors

• Rebecca Flemming (University of Exeter)
• Dr Javier Salguero (UKHSA)