Jessica Agius Australian Society for Microbiology Annual Scientific Meeting 2021

Jessica Agius

I completed my PhD in early 2021, which involved a collaboration with the University of Sydney, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, and the Australian Registry of Wildlife Health, Taronga Conservation Society Australia to investigate and characterise a novel, emergent Enterococcus species infection (Enterococcus lacertideformus) threatening two species of critically endangered and extinct in the wild reptiles endemic to Christmas Island. In addition to this novel discovery, my research examined broader health issues of Christmas Island reptiles, with a particular focus on viruses and parasites. My PhD candidature has enabled me to develop skills in histology, microscopy, microbiology, molecular biology, pharmacology and pathogen genomics. Currently, I work at the Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology - Public Health at Westmead Hospital as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow through the University of Sydney. This research focuses on the use of genomics to understand the evolution of SARS-COV-2.