250105j FIRST SERIES OF STUDENT RESEARCH GROUP MEETINGS: GROUP #10 7.00-7.55pm 08/01/2025

Agenda of Meeting with PNU Students prepared by  Prof Omar Hasan Kasule MB ChB (MUK), MPH (Harvard), DrPH (Harvard). 

 

Time	Sunday Jan 5, 2025	Monday Jan 6, 2025	Tuesday Jan 7, 2025	Wednesday Jan 8, 2025	Thursday Jan 9, 2025
7.00pm –  7.55pm	Group 1	Group 4	Group 7	Group 10	Group 13
8.00pm –  8.55pm	Group 2	Group 5	Group 8	Group 11
9.00pm –  9.55pm	Group 3	Group 6	Group 9	Group 12

 

 

AGENDA

• Know one another: self-introductions – 5 minutes
• The way forward – 5 minutes
• Presentation of the proposed research program -5 minutes
• Q&A and open discussion – 30 minutes

 

WAY FORWARD

• Vision: publish at least 2 papers; the first a review within 6 months and the second based on laboratory or data analysis within 1-3 years.
• First step: We shall start by brain-storming about the assigned topic then the group will review the literature to narrow down the topic and develop key words
• Second step: Systematic literature review within the group and 1-hour presentation to Prof Omar once a week or once every two weeks.
• Third step: familiarization with available laboratory equipment and procedures to prepare one or more research proposal from each group. Faculty will be appointed as supervisors or principal investigators. Students will be co-authors.
• Some of the research will be new and innovative. Some of it will be attempts at validating research carried out outside the Kingdom.

 

RESEARCH PROGRAM ON LONG-TERM SURVEILLANCE OF POTENTIALLY PATHOGENIC MUTATIONS OF RESPIRATORY VIRUSES FROM HOSPITAL AND CENTRAL LABORATORY SAMPLES

• Respiratory and other viruses undergo mutations some of which may lead to pathogenic variants that cause disease outbreaks or epidemics
• Surveillance of the mutations can help predict epidemics early to take preventive measures
• Surveillance is possible using respiratory or salivary samples that are stored or that can be collected from healthy, sick patients inn the hospital or environmental sources
• Laboratory technics for analysing mutations are available and they have become cheap and quick.

 

INITIAL REFERENCES

1. Colson P, Chaudet H, Delerce J, Pontarotti P, Levasseur A, Fantini J, La Scola B, Devaux C, Raoult D . Role of SARS-CoV-2 mutations in the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic..J Infect. 2024 May;88(5):106150.
2. Holland LA, et al. Genomic Sequencing Surveillance to Identify Respiratory Syncytial Virus Mutations, Arizona, USA. Emerg Infect Dis. 2023. 
3. Zhao L, et al.  An epidemiologic surveillance study based on wastewater and respiratory specimens reveals influenza a virus prevalence and mutations in Taiyuan, China during 2023-2024. BMC Infect Dis. 2024. 
4. Shao W, Li X, Goraya MU, Wang S, Chen JL. Evolution of Influenza A Virus by Mutation and Re-Assortment. Int J Mol Sci. 2017 Aug 7;18(8):1650.
5. Yunker M, Fall A, Norton JM, Abdullah O, Villafuerte DA, Pekosz A, Klein E, Mostafa HH. Genomic Evolution and Surveillance of Respiratory Syncytial Virus during the 2023-2024 Season. Viruses. 2024 Jul 12;16(7):1122. doi: 10.3390/v16071122.
6. Giovanetti M, Benedetti F, Campisi G, Ciccozzi A, Fabris S, Ceccarelli G, Tambone V, Caruso A, Angeletti S, Zella D, Ciccozzi M. Evolution patterns of SARS-CoV-2: Snapshot on its genome variants. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2021 Jan 29;538:88-91.
7. Piñana M, González-Sánchez A, Andrés C, Vila J, Creus-Costa A, Prats-Méndez I, Arnedo-Muñoz M, Saubi N, Esperalba J, Rando A, Nadal-Baron P, Quer J, González-López JJ, Soler-Palacín P, Martínez-Urtaza J, Larrosa N, Pumarola T, Antón A. Genomic evolution of human respiratory syncytial virus during a decade (2013-2023): bridging the path to monoclonal antibody surveillance..J Infect. 2024 May;88(5):106153.