Ghazi Kayali
Chief Executive Officer
Human Link

mec14669 July 1, 2024

Ghazi Kayali

Managing Partner
Human Link DMCC

Over the past 15 years, the over-arching theme for Dr. Kayali’s research has been emerging zoonoses epidemiology at the human-animal interface. Dr. Kayali has extensive experience with conducting and coordinating surveillance on emerging infectious diseases and has expertise in virology, epidemiology, modelling, and genomics. In addition to research, Dr. Kayali has an active role in consultation with the World Health Organization, specifically relating to zoonotic diseases, pandemic preparedness, and International Health Regulations. Through his consultation work, he has impacted the public health policies of several countries in the Eastern Mediterranean region. At present, Dr. Kayali’s policy-related work is focused on developing zoonotic disease policies and improving intersectoral collaboration and coordination. Dr. Kayali advocates for One Health approaches in the Region and strive to institutionalize the concept in governmental policies and practice.

Dr. Kayali established and is currently Managing Partner of Human Link DMCC. We are members of global surveillance networks including the US National Institutes of Health funded Centers of Excellence for Influenza Research and Response (CEIRR). Dr. Kayali has extensive experience leading multidisciplinary teams and have trained more than 10 postgraduate students in the development and implementation of surveillance research programs. In addition, Dr. Kayali has been the Lead and Principal Investigator of many big multi-site projects funded by international agencies. Ongoing and recently completed projects that he would like to highlight include:

  • Ecology of swine flu viruses in AI-endemic countries, funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID CEIRR), contract# 5N93021C00016 from September 2023-ongoing. Role: Principal Investigator
  • Transmission dynamics of avian influenza viruses at the wild bird-poultry-human interfaces in Egyptian Live Bird Markets, funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID CEIRR), contract# 5N93021C00016, from April 2021-ongoing. Role: Principal Investigator
  • Surveillance for avian influenza and MERS-CoV at the human-animal interface in the Middle East, funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID CEIRS), contract #HHSN272201400006C, from April 2016 till March 2021. Role: Principal Investigator
  • Coronaviruses at the human-animal interface in Egypt, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), contract# 07-306-7119- 52304, from June 2016 till September 2018. Role: Site Principal Investigator.
  • Case-control study of pandemic A/H1N1 risk factors in Lebanon, funded by the Department of State’s Biosecurity Engagement Program, grant number S-LMAQM-05-GR-114, from May 2011 till July 2013. Role: Principal Investigator

 

Michelle Wille
Senior Research Fellow
University of Melbourne

mec14669 July 1, 2024

Michelle Wille

Senior Research Fellow
University of Melbourne

Topic: Ecology of flu in wild avian hosts

Dr Michelle Wille’s primary research focus is the dynamics of wild bird viruses: the ecology and evolution of influenza A viruses in waterfowl, shorebirds and seabirds, which utilize a range of migratory strategies to disseminate viruses. She is currently working on the dynamics of avian influenza in in Australia and Antarctica through detection, isolation and characterization of viruses, but also using serology. Beyond influenza A, she is starting to assess viromes in wild birds, with a particular interest in ecological drivers of observed patterns. Current projects are being undertaken in collaboration with Aeron Hurt at WHO Collaborating Centre for Influenza, Marcel Klaassen at Deakin University and Edward Holmes at University of Sydney.

Martha Nelson
Adjunct Professor
Georgetown University

mec14669 July 1, 2024

Martha Nelson

Adjunct Professor
Georgetown University

Evolutionary Biologist
US National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Topic: Swine flu

Dr Nelson is a computational biologist who studies pathogen evolution. She uses large-scale genetic data to study rapidly evolving RNA viruses at the human-animal interface, including coronavirus and influenza. She has worked as a scientist at the National Institutes of Health since 2008, where she discovered the zoonotic origins of the virus that caused the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic and collaborates with scientists on seven continents to mitigate future pandemic threats. She received her PhD from the Pennsylvania State University’s Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics in 2008.

Colin Parrish
Professor
Cornell University

mec14669 July 1, 2024

Colin Parrish

Professor
Baker Institute for Animal Health
Cornell University

Website: Parrish Lab

Topic: Flu in non-human mammals

Dr. Parrish has been on the faculty at Cornell University since 1988. His interest in virology has been focused on understanding emerging viruses, in particular those that cause epidemics in new hosts – including the canine parvovirus and H3N8 and H3N2 canine influenza viruses. In addition to studying the viruses, the laboratory has been seeking to clarify the general principles surrounding the ways in which viruses (or other pathogens) can transfer from one host to another and gain the ability to cause epidemics of disease. Also how we can anticipate – and preferably forestall – such outbreaks. This requires a multidisciplinary approach, and his lab has been able to study those more complex areas by working with many collaborators.

Erik Karlson
Professor
Institut Pasteur International Network

mec14669 July 1, 2024

Erik Karlson

Deputy Head of Virology Unit
Institut Pasteur du Cambodge, Cambodia

Director, National Influenza Center of Cambodia

Director, Regional WHO H5 Reference Lab

Dr. Erik Karlsson received his doctorate from the Department of Nutrition at the Gilling’s School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he was also awarded certificates for study in Translational Medicine and Field Epidemiology.

Following completion of his Ph.D., Dr. Karlsson performed postdoctoral work at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. Currently, Dr. Karlsson serves as the Deputy Head of the Virology Unit at Institut Pasteur du Cambodge (IPC) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. He is the Director of the National Influenza Center and the Regional WHO H5 Reference Laboratory, and is integral to the ongoing global response to the COVID-19 pandemic as the Coordinator of the WHO COVID-19 Global Reference Laboratory.

Dr. Karlsson is an internationally recognized expert in influenza (both human seasonal and avian) and other respiratory viruses, especially those with zoonotic and pandemic potential. He consults for organizations such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and is the founder of the Consortium of Animal market Networks to Assess Risk of emerging Infectious diseases through Enhanced Surveillance (CANARIES).