Session Report: Guest speaker Dr. Gary Wong joins for PEIC in May

 On May 29th, 2024, the Pasteur English Immersion Club (PEIC) hosted its third special guest, Dr. Gary Wong, a Senior Researcher at the Virology Unit at Institut Pasteur du Cambodge.

During the session, Gary Wong presented his study on the virome profiles of wild and urban rodents in Yunnan Province, China. His research, conducted from 2020-2021, involved analyzing 681 organ samples using metagenomic techniques to uncover the diversity and distribution of mammalian viruses in these animals across different habitats with varying levels of human disturbance.

After the presentation, participants engaged in discussion with Gary Wong, exploring the implications of his findings for public health and the strategies needed to mitigate the risks of viral spillover from rodents to humans. The discussion also explored how environmental drivers, such as climate change, land use change, and human encroachment into natural habitats, contribute to increased viral diversity and spillover risks.

We would like to thank Gary Wong for his participation as our second guest speaker. It was fascinating to learn about the current research on viral diversity in rodent populations and the implications for human health.

Stay tuned for news and updates regarding the upcoming July session as they will be posted on the FPJ website soon!

More information about the PEIC can be found here: https://pasteur-japan.net/pasteur-english-immersion-club-register-now/

Also, if you would like to read the paper we discussed, please check out this link: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/22221751.2023.2290842