Day 1 (26th November)

TimeSpeakerTopic
Conference opening1:30pmJohn Lees
Opening talk1:45pmChristophe FraserTransmission studies and epidemiology of HIV informed from analyses of within and between host pathogen diversity
Session 1: Metagenomics2:15pmSarah BuddleEvaluating metagenomics and targeted approaches for diagnosis and surveillance of viruses
2:35pmGuillaume MericExploring links between microbial infections, gut microbes and health using large datasets
Break2:55pm
3:10pmTommi MaeklinLinking colibactin-producing E. coli prevalence in metagenomics data with colorectal cancer incidence
3:20pmSana NaderiCalculating population genetic metrics from wastewater sequencing data to predict SARS-CoV-2 waves
3:30pmTom StantonEnabling antigen structure prediction with Kaptive for enhanced vaccine development
3:40pmGerry Tonkin-HillTracking strain persistence and transmission using metagenomics
Lightning talks I4:10pm

Day 2 (27th November)

TimeSpeakerTopic
Session 2: Selection and evolution10:30amLiam ShawThe bacterial pan-immune system and selective pressures on plasmids
10:50amRebecca GladstoneDiversification of ABC transporter-dependent capsular K-loci in E. coli
11:10amGherard Batisti BiffignandiGenes on the lam: how fast can AMR-MGEs spread in a bacterial population?
Break11:20am
11:50amAdam DinanA pan-transcriptomic view of bacterial evolution
12:00amSam HorsfieldA Large Language Model for studying bacterial genome architecture, population structure and epidemiology
12:10amEvangelos MourkasEvolution of high resistance in Campylobacter in Peru
Lunch12:30pm
Session 3: Emerging infectious diseases and pandemics3:30pmJumpei ItoPredicting Viral Antigenicity, Fitness, and Evolution
3:50pmGemma MurrayThe emergence of a zoonotic bacterial pathogen from within the pig respiratory microbiota
4:00pmRebecca FrenchComprehensive infectome analysis of an emerging disease in the critically endangered Kakapo using total RNA sequencing
4:10pmEunice NjugunaThe Impact of Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV10) on Pneumococcal Population Structure in Kilifi, Kenya: A Whole Genome Sequencing Analysis
Break4:20pm
4:40pmHarry ChownUtilising pangenomics to study the human fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus
4:50pmJemma GeogheganTracking SARS-CoV-2 in New Zealand: insights from genomics
Lightning talks II5:10pm
Standing dinner6:00pm

Day 3 (28th November)

TimeSpeakerTopic
Session 4: Pangenomes and tools10:30amLeah RobertsUsing pangenomes to investigate plasmid evolution on a miniscule timescale
10:50amChao YangMacrogenetic Atlas of Prokaryotes
11:00amJane HawkeyDeveloping a robust approach to determining plasmid transmission in the hospital setting
Break11:10am
11:30amCaitlin CollinsMolecular clocks in the accessory genome?: Investigating rates of gene gain, loss, and selection
11:40amDaria FrolovaApplying rearrangement distances to enable plasmid epidemiology with pling
11:50amMarco MolariEvolution of genome structure and content in closely-related bacteria
Lunch12:10pm
Session 5: Modelling2pmHsiao-Han ChangUsing Identical by Descent (IBD) to Infer Infectious Disease Transmission: What Does IBD Really Mean?
2:20pmDanielle IngleBacterial phylodynamics of drug-resistant pathogens
2:40pmJonathan PekarThe recency and geographical origins of the bat viruses ancestral to SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2
Break2:50pm
3:10pmChris RuisInferring host species of pathogens through mutational spectra
3:20pmSeungwon KoEpistasis analysis across bacterial pangenomes using Continuous-Time Markov Models
3:30pmNicholas CroucherHow intragenomic conflict shapes the pangenome
Close4pm