About
I am Reader of Integrative Virology at the University of Liverpool, where I lead an interdisciplinary research programme on virus-host interactions, vector-borne disease emergence and infectious disease prediction.
My research combines experimental virology, vector biology, field surveillance, ecology, climate modelling and artificial intelligence. The overarching aim is to move infectious disease research from retrospective description towards prediction, preparedness and intervention.
Vector competence and arbovirus transmission:
My group defines how interactions between virus, vector and environment determine transmission potential and geographic risk. We focus particularly on West Nile virus, Usutu virus, dengue, chikungunya and other emerging arboviruses.
We combine laboratory infection experiments with field surveillance, ecological data and climate modelling to identify where endemic and invasive mosquitoes and viruses can establish and transmit, under both current and future climate scenarios. We also investigate how viruses and vectors adapt to changing environmental conditions and how this alters future disease risk.
Mosquito ecology, surveillance and viromes:
I lead research on mosquito distribution, invasive species, blood-feeding behaviour and vector surveillance, including large-scale studies of Culex and Aedes mosquitoes.
My group also characterises mosquito-associated viromes to identify hidden viral diversity, understand ecological structuring of mosquito viruses and determine whether insect-specific viruses or other components of the mosquito microbiome modify susceptibility to medically important arboviruses.
AI and infectious disease prediction:
I develop AI and machine-learning approaches to predict virus-host associations, vector competence and epidemic risk.
This includes identifying animal hosts in which viruses can persist, recombine and spill over into humans, and integrating experimental, ecological, environmental and evolutionary data to identify high-risk virus-vector-host combinations.
The aim is to use AI not simply for prediction, but to prioritise experiments, surveillance and interventions, creating an iterative system in which modelling and experimental biology continuously inform one another.
Climate change, One Health and preparedness:
My programme operates within a One Health framework linking human, animal and environmental health. Climate change, land-use change, globalisation and vector movement are altering infectious disease risk, requiring genuinely interdisciplinary approaches.
I work with epidemiologists, ecologists, modellers, clinicians, veterinarians, public-health organisations and government partners, with extensive collaborations across Southeast Asia and wider international networks spanning six continents.
Policy and government engagement:
Translation into policy and preparedness is a core component of my research programme.
I contribute to UK Government and research institute advisory groups, including UKHSA, DEFRA and the Pandemic Institute, and participate in government and Civil Service policy discussions on vector-borne disease, emerging infections, climate change and preparedness.
I have been invited to Parliament to brief MPs, policymakers and healthcare professionals on mosquito-borne disease risk in the UK. I am also a co-author of the UKHSA Health Effects of Climate Change report, and my research has been cited in UK and international government, health and policy documents.
Internationally, I contribute to the ASEAN-UK Health Security Partnership and provide expert advice to governments and commercial organisations on vector-borne disease, virology, surveillance and AI.
Leadership and external profile:
I lead the UK Vector-Borne Disease Conference, a major national forum bringing together academia, government, public health and industry. I have expanded the meeting to reflect the increasingly interdisciplinary nature of the field, incorporating One Health, human health, veterinary science, ecology and social science.
Within the University, I provide research leadership through AI-assisted REF development, postgraduate training, and supervision and mentoring of PhD students, postdoctoral researchers and independently funded fellows.
My work has received extensive national and international media coverage, with more than 350 television, radio, newspaper, magazine and online reports, including the BBC, ITV, The New York Times, Nature News, Science News and New Scientist. I have also written for The Conversation.
Background:
I studied Biology at Imperial College London, completing my undergraduate and Master's degrees between 2005 and 2009, before completing my doctorate at the University of Oxford between 2009 and 2013. My doctoral research investigated Wolbachia as a tool to induce cytoplasmic incompatibility and block dengue and chikungunya virus transmission in the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus.
I joined the University of Liverpool in 2013 as a Postdoctoral Research Associate and progressed through Researcher-Co-Investigator, Tenure Track Fellow, Lecturer and Senior Lecturer positions. In 2026, I was promoted to Reader of Integrative Virology.