Who infected whom during an outbreak of an infectious disease? And how can we prevent or quickly contain such an outbreak in the future?

Livestock is farmed in intensive systems within areas of high livestock densities, which may lead to a quick spread of new pathogens. The spread of pathogens within or between livestock farms affects the animals' health and potentially poses risks to public health. This is why it is important to understand how these pathogens spread and how we can prevent it.

Viruses evolve

Pathogens, and viruses in particular, continuously change their genetic material. By tracking these changes over time, we can determine which animal infected another animal or person. This emerging field of research is also known as ‘phylodynamics.’ Marina Meester studies virus transmission using phylodynamics. Additionally, she aims to understand how virus recombination affects the spread of pathogens and how vaccination impacts viral evolution. Through this research, she contributes to the control of viruses within animal populations.

Passion for Collaboration and One Health

Currently, Marina focuses on three infectious diseases: hepatitis E virus, Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) virus, and influenza in pigs and poultry. She is open to collaboration on projects involving genetic and/or epidemiological data on pathogens and has a passion for One Health: the interconnectedness of humans, animals, and their environment. Additionally, Marina wants to contribute to reduced animal experimenting,  by exploring animal-friendly sampling methods for studying disease transmission, such as dust and saliva samples.

Lecturer and Thesis Supervisor

Marina teaches courses in epidemiology and One Health. She is the coordinator of the course ‘Healthcare and Society’ in an interdisciplinary Bachelor of the Faculties of Medicine, Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy. In this course, students learn about international healthcare for both humans and animals, and the interaction between the environment (including cultural, socio-economic factors) and human and animal health. She welcomes students interested in writing a thesis on genetic epidemiology, the transmission of diseases between humans and animals, or other related topics.

Career

Marina is a veterinarian of origin, focused on farm animal and veterinary public health. After completing her veterinary studies, she earned a second master’s degree in epidemiology and became a diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Public Health due to her interest in zoonotic diseases. Her PhD thesis focused on the dynamics and strategies for control  of hepatitis E virus in pig herds. Currently, she works as an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine.