Abstract:

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is an emerging viral pathogen of significant public health concern, causing an estimated 20 million infections globally each year. While HEV genotypes 1 and 2 (HEV-1 and -2) are associated with waterborne outbreaks in low- and middle-income countries, HEV-3 and HEV-4 predominate in high-income countries and are associated with zoonotic transmission via consumption of contaminated pork products. In Ireland, genotype 3e predominates in pigs, whereas human infections are mainly associated with genotype 3c, suggesting additional or indirect transmission pathways. This talk will describe current research in the investigation of novel sources of HEV in non-pig species, environmental contamination and imported food products as well as new models and imaging systems to understand HEV using a multi-organ and whole body approach. 

About our speaker:

Dr. Nicola Fletcher is an Assistant Professor at the School of Veterinary Medicine and a Fellow of the Conway Institute, UCD. She holds a BSc from the University of Limerick and a PhD in viral neuropathology from UCD. Following her PhD 

Nicola joined the University of Birmingham’s Medical School as a postdoctoral research fellow, where she researched hepatitis C's ability to infect the brain and viral subversion of the host immune system.  

Inspired by the integration of clinical work and research, Nicola pursued a veterinary degree at UCD, completing the four-year graduate programme in 2018. She then joined the Animal and Plant Health Agency in the UK, conducting high-containment infectious disease research. In 2020, she moved back to UCD to take a position as an Ad Astra fellow. Her research focus is on One Health, with a particular interest in zoonotic viral diseases including hepatitis E virus and flaviviruses. She is currently funded by an ERC Synergy grant, a Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine Policy grant and a Frontiers for the Future award from Research Ireland.