I am a mid-career investigator working in the Virology department (Institut Pasteur de Dakar), which hosts the WHO collaborating center for arbovirus and hemorrhagic fever viruses and the WHO regional reference laboratory for yellow fever. According to the Institut Pasteur missions, I am involved in research, public health, and training activities.
My research activities are mainly focused on vector-virus-host interactions, especially arbovirus transmission (West Nile, Koutango, Usutu, and Rift Valley fever viruses) by mosquito vectors; their pathogenesis in vertebrate hosts using a mouse model; and the impact of factors such as viral genetic diversity, mosquito saliva, and RNA interference on arbovirus transmission as well as infection outcomes in vertebrates.
Regarding public health, I am coordinating the routine diagnosis of arbovirus and viral hemorrhagic fevers through different surveillance programs or research projects. Indeed, I am coordinating the project on the "Surveillance of two arboviruses - Rift Valley Fever and Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever viruses - and yet unknown viruses in high risk populations in Senegal” funded by the NIH.
I also have experience in field deployment for public health purposes such as outbreak investigation and control at the national and international levels.
