Determining the transmission dynamics and genetic determinants of multi-drug resistant bacteria in Tanzania using an interdisciplinary, One Health approach
Supervisors:
Taya Forde, School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow
Chris Creevey, School of Biological Sciences, Queen’s University Belfast
Louise Matthews, School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow
Katarina Oravcova, School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, Univeristy of Glasgow
Summary:
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) emergence and spread is one of the greatest challenges of our era. This is associated with increased risk of treatment failure, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. This project centres on leveraging whole genome sequencing data and epidemiological information gathered from bacteria isolated from across hosts and settings in Tanzania; a large (>1000) genome dataset is already available, along with associated epidemiological data.
The focus is on the emergence and spread of multi-drug resistant bacteria and/or their resistance genes. This project builds on a larger collaborative initiative to support Tanzania’s National Action Plan against AMR. The student will develop skills in infectious disease/molecular epidemiology, bioinformatics, bacterial genomics, AMR, statistics, and disease modelling and machine learning.