Inaugural lecture

Invitation to Professor Rene Hendriksen’s inaugural lecture

Bacteria and microorganisms Genes and genomes Food, fish and agriculture Food safety Health and diseases

Come to an inaugural lecture and learn how whole genome sequencing can be used in the global surveillance of infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance.

Humans and animals more exposed to new infectious diseases than before due to increased globalization, urbanization, poverty, poor sanitation, climate change, population growth and agricultural intensification. Many of the diseases are resistant to many antimicrobials, which complicates treatment of these diseases.

If we want to be able to treat these infectious diseases in the future, there is an increasing need for global surveillance. Surveillance data will be crucial for how and when we take action to control and prevent these diseases from spreading further. 

For years, international organizations such as the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN, have been trying to establish various regional or global surveillance programs. However, these initiatives have had little global effect due to the approach as well as lack of management and coordination. 

Meanwhile, in recent years whole genome sequencing techniques have opened up innovative ways of monitoring e.g. populations in a global context. Whole genome sequencing techniques can quickly and relatively inexpensively identify a microorganism’s entire DNA profile.

The National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, has been a groundbreaker - both by developing bioinformatics tools for use in the analysis of whole genome sequences, and by working to establish a global surveillance system for infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistant bacteria. 

Professor Rene Hendriksen will give examples of this work in his inaugural lecture entitled: ’Global surveillance of infectious disease and antimicrobial resistance in research, routine analysis, advisory service and interactions between these areas’.

The lecture will touch on the methods that are used and their constraints, national and global capacity building and international advice giving. In addition, Rene Hendriksen will talk about how research in the field can be applied in practice in order to meet future challenges and ensure global surveillance of infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance in an ever-changing world.

The lecture will be delivered in English.

Invitation

See the invitation (pdf) from the National Food Institute’s director, Christine Nellemann.

Time

Friday 16 March 2018 from 15.00 to 16.00 followed by a reception.

Place

DTU Lyngby CampusMeeting room M1
Building 101A, first floor 
Anker Engelundsvej 1
2800 Kgs. Lyngby

Registration 

Due to a limit on the number of participants and for refreshment arrangements we ask that you register by Monday 12 March 2018. It is no longer possible to register for this event.