Department of Zoology

 

Principal Investigators

Derek Smith

Position(s): Professor of Infectious Disease Informatics

Email: d.smith@zoo.cam.ac.uk

Tel.: +44 (0)1223 330933

Research area - Population and Community Ecology (Pathogen Evolution)

We use antigenic cartography, along with genetic and population biology techniques, to study basic questions in pathogen evolution, and coevolution with the acquired immunity in host populations.

Antigenic cartography is a new mathematical and computational method which for the first time allows one to quantify and visualize fine-grain phenotypic differences among strains of viruses or bacteria (Smith et al., Science 305, 371-376, 2004).

Antigenic cartography has been developed using data on human influenza virus subtype A(H3N2), and is routinely used to analyze the global data from the World Health Organization influenza surveillance network as part of the influenza vaccine strain selection process.

Research group - The Centre for Pathogen Evolution

 

Selected publications

  • Garten RJ, Davis CT, Russell CA, Shu B, Lindstrom S, Balish A, Sessions WM, Xu X, Skepner E, Deyde V, Okomo-Adhiambo M, Gubareva L, Barnes J, Smith CB, Emery SL, Hillman MJ, Rivailler P, Smagala J, de Graaf M, Burke DF, Fouchier RA, Pappas C, Alpuche-Aranda CM, López-Gatell H, Olivera H, López I, Myers CA, Faix D, Blair PJ, Yu C, Keene KM, Dotson PD Jr, Boxrud D, Sambol AR, Abid SH, St George K, Bannerman T, Moore AL, Stringer DJ, Blevins P, Demmler-Harrison GJ, Ginsberg M, Kriner P, Waterman S, Smole S, Guevara HF, Belongia EA, Clark PA, Beatrice ST, Donis R, Katz J, Finelli L, Bridges CB, Shaw M, Jernigan DB, Uyeki TM, Smith DJ, Klimov AI, Cox NJ. Antigenic and Genetic Characteristics of Swine-Origin 2009 A(H1N1) Influenza Viruses Circulating in Humans, Science, 325(5937):197-201. 2009.
  • Park AW, Daly JM, Lewis NS, Smith, DJ, Wood JLN, Grenfell BT.  Quantifying the impact of immune escape on transmission dynamics of influenza.  Science (in press).
  • Russell CA, TC Jones, IG Barr, NJ Cox, R Garten, V Gregory, I Gust, AW Hampson, AJ Hay, AC Hurt, JC de Jong, AI Klimov, T Kageyama, N Komadina, AS Lapedes, YP Lin, A Mosterin, M Obuchi, T Odagiri, ADME Osterhaus, GF Rimmelzwaan, MW Shaw, E Skepner, K Stohr, M Tashiro, RAM Fouchier, DJ Smith. 2008. The global circulation of seasonal influenza A(H3N2) viruses. Science, 32, 340-346.

  • D. J. Smith. Predictability and preparedness in influenza control. 2006, Science, 312, 392-394.
  • D. J. Smith, A. S. Lapedes, J. C. de Jong, T. M. Bestebroer, G. F. Rimmelzwaan, A. D. M. E. Osterhaus, and R. A. M. Fouchier. Mapping the Antigenic and Genetic Evolution of Influenza Virus. Science 305, 371-376, 2004.