This webinar will be held on zoom. The structure of the event will be a presentation followed by audience Q&A. Please register to be sent the joining instructions. You can pre-submit questions for the Q&A section when registering.
This webinar is part of the series
Water, Sanitation, Hygiene for Preventing Infectious Diseases (WASH)
The theme discussed in this webinar will be:
Science and engineering innovations as part of interdisciplinary approaches to preventing neglected tropical diseases
Abstract
This presentation will discuss an example of how science and engineering (including molecular science and engineering) can play an important part within interdisciplinary interventions to prevent neglected tropical diseases in low-income countries, with a specific focus on the disease schistosomiasis. The presentation will summarise the outcomes of the ‘WISER’ project, which stands for ‘Water Infrastructure for Schistosomiasis Endemic Regions’, a project funded by the Global Challenges Research Fund. The project drew together water engineers, synthetic biologists, parasitologists, snail biologists, anthropologists, behaviour-change experts, and even actors, to explore how the important disease prevention contributions of each of these disciplines can be enhanced by working together. Partners included the Natural History Museum, the National Institute for Medical Research of Tanzania, and Addis Ababa University. Specific outcomes of the project included new biosensors for detecting the parasite in water samples in the field using cutting edge synthetic biology, new information on the ability of water treatment methods such as chlorination, UV disinfection, and filtration to kill or remove the parasite from water, and new techniques for communicating important messages to community members about disease transmission pathways and how to protect themselves.
Biography
Professor Michael Templeton
Faculty of Engineering, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Professor of Public Health Engineering
Michael R. Templeton is Professor of Public Health Engineering in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Imperial College London. His research focuses on addressing public health challenges related to water supply and sanitation. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers and has served on strategic advisory groups and technical review panels for the World Health Organization, the UK Research and Innovation Global Challenges Research Fund, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and the Swedish Research Council. He is the Co-Chair of Imperial’s Global Development Hub.
About The Institute for Molecular Science and Engineering
The Institute for Molecular Science and Engineering (IMSE) is one of Imperial College London’s Global Institutes, drawing on the strength of its four faculties to address some of the grand challenges facing the world today. The Institute’s activities are focused on tackling problems where molecular innovation plays an important role.
If you have any questions about accessibility requirements please email Leah Adamson (IMSE Events Officer) on l.adamson@imperial.ac.uk