ATCC Influenza Resources: Supporting Science from Basic Research to Diagnostics, Surveillance, and Vaccines
March 13, 2025, at 12:00 PM ETAbstract
Influenza is a critical global health issue, causing widespread respiratory infections among human and animal populations each year. Recent outbreaks of the highly pathogenic avian influenza A virus H5N1 among wild bird and poultry populations and increasing incidences of this subtype in humans has underscored the need for effective diagnostic methods and control measures. In this webinar, we will provide an in-depth overview of both human and avian influenza, featuring expert insights into the pathogenesis, diagnostics, and economic impacts of outbreaks. We will also highlight the latest advancements in diagnostic tools and will discuss ATCC’s authenticated reference materials that support these critical efforts.
Key Points
- Detailed information on the nature and significance of human and avian influenza viruses and the implications of interspecies transmission.
- Current diagnostic and surveillance methods for influenza viruses, including RT-PCR and molecular assays.
- An overview of ATCC’s extensive portfolio of resources for influenza diagnostics development, with in-depth validation data provided for quantitative synthetic analytical reference materials.
Presenters
Holly A. Asbury, BS
Senior Biologist, ATCC
Holly joined the Microbiology R&D team in 2020. She focuses on developing and supporting analytical reference material products in the ATCC catalog. Holly has participated in several stability studies to determine product shelf-life and works on developing and troubleshooting real-time PCR and digital PCR assays for new product development, manufacturing, and quality control.
Leka Papazisi, DVM, PhD
Principal Scientist, Research and Industrial Solutions, ATCC
Dr. Papazisi joined ATCC in 2019. His main responsibility is product development, from asset inception through lifecycle management. While at ATCC, Dr. Papazisi led the Microbiology R&D team in developing several new products, including a proprietary nucleic acid storage buffer formulation and various diagnostics control materials. In addition to technical leadership, his responsibilities include talent management, new product innovation, and management of internal and external cross-functional activities. Before joining ATCC, Dr. Papazisi worked for OpGen (2018-2019), Canon U.S. Life Sciences (2011-2018), and J. Craig Venter Institute (2003-2011). At OpGen, he directed the implementation of an antimicrobial-resistance surveillance system for the state of New York. While at Canon US Life Sciences, his main responsibility was the development of PCR-based assays and assay controls for detecting human inherited diseases and infectious agents—launching with his team ca. 700 products. At the JCVI, Dr. Papazisi led a variety of comparative genomic projects of several biothreat agents. During his academic career at the U. of Connecticut and Vet Med U. of Vienna, Dr. Papazisi studied genomics, virulence factors, and vaccine design for mycoplasmas as well as molecular profiling of Salmonella.
