AFBI appoints new Head of Virology

Professor Louise Cosby has taken up the position of Head of Virology in the Veterinary Sciences Division of the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI).

Louise will provide overall management of the Virology Branch where she will lead a multidisciplinary programme of research aimed at improving the diagnosis and control of viral diseases of farmed animals. This includes work on new and emerging viral infections of animals.  She will also have a major role in AFBI’s provision of an emergency response capability for outbreaks of diseases which pose a threat to the health and welfare of livestock in Northern Ireland.

Previous Career

Professor Cosby joins AFBI from Queen’s University Belfast where she was a full time member of staff for over 30 years. Her most recent position in Queen’s was as Chair of Microbiology in the School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences. She will retain an honorary professorship in Queen’s.  Louise is a Fellow of the Royal College of Pathologists and a Fellow of the UK Society of Biology.  In her early career she was a visiting Associate Professor in the Veterinary School in Cornell University USA and, more recently, a visiting scientist at the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) Pirbright Institute in Surrey.

Appointments

Professor Cosby is an assessor for research grant applications for the European Commission, an Associate Editor for the Journal of Neurovirology, and a review editor for Frontiers in Microbiology.  She has also been Deputy Chair of the Professional Development Committee of the Society for General Microbiology and an external assessor for appointments and promotions in Medical Microbiology in the University of Malaysia.

She has also been a member of the BBSRC’s Biochemistry and Cell Biology Committee, Chair of Science Foundation Ireland’s Biochemistry Board and a member of its panels on Bioscience and Infections and Immunity and Host Defence.  She is also a former member of Health Research Board, Ireland.

Research

Louise’s research career has focussed on ‘Negative Strand’ viruses which include bovine respiratory syncytial virus, bovine parinfluenza virus and avian influenza virus which cause important diseases in animals.  At AFBI she plans to develop the animal virus research programme through grants from a range of funding organisations to further enhance the service provided to DARD and the agri-food industry.    

AFBI Virology Branch

Virology Branch offers a wide range of diagnostic tests for viral infections of cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry and fish to the local industry. This includes the capability for testing new and emerging viruses, including a number of which are insect borne and which present an increased threat due to climate change. The branch also has expertise in design, production and validation of viral vaccines and can offer advice on any of these aspects.

Notes to editors: 

 AFBI carries out high quality technology research and development, statutory, analytical, and diagnostic testing functions for DARD and other Government departments, public bodies and commercial companies.

 AFBI's Vision is “Scientific excellence in Northern Ireland …  serving the world”.

All media enquiries to AFBI Press Office 

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