Hi I’m Elodie Ghedin, a biomedical researcher harnessing the power of genomic sequencing techniques to generate critical insights about human pathogens. I've always wanted to be a scientist. When I was 10 years old I set up a lab in my grandparents’ basement and called it the "Biology, Chemistry and Geology Laboratory" (very ambitious). What inspired me to want to become a parasitologist was a book I read as an undergraduate called 'Malaria Capers: Tales of Parasites and People" by Robert Desowitz – just the right combination of fascinating discoveries and science gossip.
In my career I’ve worked with several other scientists to decode the function of some of the most virulent human pathogens, including parasites endemic to tropical regions such as elephantiasis, and river blindness, and more recently viruses like influenza. One of my projects is on decoding the virus genomes from flu-infected patients and their family members, and determine how the virus mutates during the infection. We find that people carry multiple strains of influenza viruses and that minor strains of the virus are often transmitted along with the major strains, for which the seasonal vaccines are specifically generated. We ultimately hope to determine what factors enable the virus to transmit more efficiently from person-to-person, as well as how to limit this transmission to prevent an epidemic.
What I’ve found through my work is that molecular genetics is crucial to exploring the basic biology of pathogens and also represents a powerful tool for scientists working to improve public health around the world.
I will back at 3 pm ET to answer your questions, AMA!
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