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Department of Veterinary Medicine

Cambridge Veterinary School
 

Transmission and Persistence of Infectious Diseases

I use mathematical, statistical and public engagement methods to improve our understanding of the transmission and persistence of infectious diseases and thus better inform policy decisions for control in animal and human populations.

I study a range of disease dynamic systems including bovine Tuberculosis in cattle, childhood infectious diseases, Norovirus, Camplyobacter jejuni and influenza. Unifying these varied systems is a central interest in the development and application of approximate methods of Bayesian inference for the estimation of complex stochastic models.

Biography

Andrew Conlan is based in the Disease Dynamics Unit (DDU) at the Department of Veterinary Medicine in Cambridge.
Andrew obtained a MPhys degree in Mathematical Physics from the University of Edinburgh before moving to the Department of Zoology in Cambridge in 2002 to undertake a PhD with Bryan Grenfell.  He has remained in Cambridge since then, furthering his research on disease dynamics in the Department of Applied Mathematics (DAMTP) and the Department of Veterinary Medicine. His research has focused on understanding the stochastic persistence of infectious diseases, ranging from childhood infectious diseases, to bacterial infections in livestock.  He has particular interests in measles, pertussis, scarlet fever, diptheria, campylobacter and bovine tuberculosis.

Publications

Key publications: 

Google Scholar - list of all publications

Potential benefits of cattle vaccination as a supplementary control for bovine tuberculosis Conlan, AJK, Brooks Pollock, E, McKinley, TJ, Mitchell, AP, Jones, GJ, Vordermeier, N, Wood, JLN (2015)  PLoS Comput Biol 11 (2) e1004038  PMID: 25695736

Estimating the hidden burden of bovine tuberculosis in Great Britain Conlan, AJK, Mckinley, TJ, Karolemeas, K, Brooks Pollock, E, Goodchild, AV, Mitchell, AP, Birch, CPD, Clifton-Hadley, RS, Wood, JLN (2012) . PLoS Comp Bio 8 (10) e1002730 PMID: 23093923

Transmission and dose response experiments for social animals – a reappraisal of the colonisation biology of Campylobacter jejuni in chickens Conlan, AJK, Line, JE, Hiett, K, Coward, C, van Diemen, PM, Stevens, MP, Jones, MA, Gog, JR, Maskell, DJ  J. R. Soc. Interface. (2011) PMID: 21593028

Measuring social networks in British primary schools through scientific engagement  Conlan, AJK, Eames, KTD, Gage, JA, von Kirchbach, JC, Ross, JV, Saenz, RA, Gog, JR (2010) Proc. Roy. Soc. B doi: 10.1098/rspb.2010.1807 PMID: 21047859

Time is of the essence: exploring a measles outbreak response vaccination in Niamey, Niger Grass, RF, Conlan, AJ, Ferrari, MJ, Djibo, A, Le Menach, A, Bjørnstad, ON, Grenfell, BT.  (2008) J R Soc Interface 5 (18):67-74. PMID: 17504737

Dr Andrew James Kerr Conlan
Associate Professor in Epidemiology
Takes PhD students
Available for consultancy

Affiliations

Classifications: 
Local Affiliations: 
Person keywords: 
Bayesian Methods
Mathematical modelling
Host-Pathogen Interaction
Campylobacter jejuni
Epidemiology
Infectious disease dynamics
Tuberculosis
Disease Ecology
Influenza
Meningitis
Norovirus
Cattle
MRSA
Funding: 
Takeda Pharmaceuticals
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
DEFRA
Evelyn Trust