{"id":4315,"date":"2015-06-22T17:18:56","date_gmt":"2015-06-22T15:18:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.embl.de\/?p=4315"},"modified":"2025-02-19T13:31:22","modified_gmt":"2025-02-19T12:31:22","slug":"1506-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/events\/1506-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Pandemic! A public event"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Omar Wagih<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

More than 130 visitors bustled into the Cambridge Union Society for the event on 3 June. The evening featured three expert speakers from different fields, who outlined the risks posed by infectious diseases, how they come about and what we can do to prevent future outbreaks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Halld\u00f3r
Halld\u00f3r Stef\u00e1nsson, Head of EMBL\u2019s Science and Society Programme, opened the event. PHOTO: Mark Charles Adams<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Halld\u00f3r Stef\u00e1nsson, Head of EMBL\u2019s Science and Society Programme<\/a>, opened the event chaired by Scientific Engagement Officer Katrina Costa. Kicking off the talks was Derek Smith (University of Cambridge), who discussed past outbreaks and pandemics, how they were dealt with and how we can be better prepared. Oliver Billker, a faculty member at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, then gave a case study of his research into malaria, explaining why we are still unable to beat a pathogen that causes almost 600 000 deaths worldwide each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The concluding talk was given by Kristian Andersen, a research fellow at Harvard University, who works in collaboration with local hospitals in Sierra Leone to develop better diagnostic tools for Ebola. \u201cThese kinds of diseases are not just a problem in West Africa,\u201d he emphasised, \u201cIt’s a global problem.\u201d He shared insights on how countries deal with pathogenic viruses, warning: \u201cGetting to zero cases does not mean staying at zero. It’s critical that we keep investing in the healthcare infrastructure in West Africa so the next outbreak can be stopped at the first case. We have not seen the end of Ebola \u2013 we need to know that it’s there and be able to diagnose it faster.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have not seen the end of Ebola \u2013 we need to know that it’s there and be able to diagnose it faster.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The talks inspired a lively 45-minute Q&A with the speakers. \u201cThere were so many questions \u2013 many more than at most regular talks,\u201d said Marco Galardini, a postdoc in EMBL-EBI\u2019s Beltrao group. Discussions then moved to the bar, for the opportunity to mingle and network over drinks and snacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

EMBL\u2019s Science and Society Committee will soon make plans for next year\u2019s event, which is likely to be held at the same venue in June 2016.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"1506-pandemic3\"
Speakers Kristian Andersen, Derek Smith and Oliver Billker. PHOTO: Mark Charles Adams<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

EMBL-EBI organises an evening of talks and discussion about the global spread of infectious disease.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":4316,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17595,4],"tags":[36,34,60],"embl_taxonomy":[],"class_list":["post-4315","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-connections","category-events","tag-embl-ebi","tag-pathogen","tag-science-and-society"],"acf":{"article_intro":"

The threat of rapidly spreading infectious disease has long captured public imagination \u2013 and the sheer scale of the Ebola crisis has brought the risk of a pandemic to the forefront of people\u2019s minds. The topic seemed a timely choice for EMBL-EBI\u2019s ninth annual Science and Society evening: \u2018Pandemic! The global threat of deadly diseases<\/a>\u2019.<\/p>\n","related_links":false,"article_sources":false,"vf_locked":false,"featured":false,"color":"#007B53"},"embl_taxonomy_terms":[],"yoast_head":"\nPandemic! 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