How sequencing became a cornerstone for scientific evidence on viral spread, immune evasion and disease severity.
by Professor Sharon Peacock, Professor of Public Health and Microbiology, Department of Medicine, University of Cambridge; Director and Chair of the COVID-19 Genomics UK (COG-UK) consortium
Microbial sequencing allows us to define the genetic code of individual microbes as well as microbial communities. Already a well-established research tool by the time that the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, this was translated at pace to track viral evolution at an unprecedented scale. In this talk, I will give an overview of how genomic data were used to guide the pandemic response at a national and global scale. I will provide a birds-eye view of the reasons behind viral evolution as well as the practical reality of tracking variants. I will also describe what it took to translate and embed this technology into the UK response during a national emergency.
For more information about upcoming lectures see www.csar.org.uk
