- Overview
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Humans have evolved to live in partnership with trillions of microbes that inhabit nearly every part of our bodies — including our skin, lungs, and gut. This vast and complex community of bacteria, fungi, and viruses interacts with many body systems and can influence how we stay healthy or become sick. These microbial communities, known collectively as the microbiome, are themselves shaped by changes in our bodies over time.
My proposed research aims to study how the microbiome changes before and during disease, to uncover early signs that could predict illness. Understanding these changes could help us develop new diagnostic tools that allow medical teams to detect and treat disease sooner and more precisely.
- Publications
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Serological evaluation of coronavirus IgA and IgG antibodies in a repeated cross-sectional cohort of unvaccinated and vaccinated pregnant individuals over three months following SARS-CoV-2 infection
Microbiology Spectrum
Tanunliong, G. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Sbihi, H. and Pidduck, T. and Chang, Y. and Li, F.F. and Luk, D. and Forward, L. and McClymont, E. and Elwood, C. and Krajden, M. and Jassem, A.N. and Money, D. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.02167-25
2026Antibodies Against SARS-CoV-2 Do Not Cross-React with Endemic Coronaviruses in a Pediatric Population: Data from a Bangladesh Cohort
Viruses
M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Tanunliong, G. and Kabir, M. and Alam, M. and Hossain, B. and Rashid, H. and Jassem, A.N. and Sekirov, I. and Haque, R. and Morshed, M.
DOI: 10.3390/v17020161
2025Series 1: The Use of hsp65- and erm(41)-Targeted Amplicon Sequencing in the Diagnostic Workflow for Non-Tuberculous Mycobacteria
Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
Lee, T. and Cabrera, A. and Kolehmainen, K. and Hird, T. and Jorgensen, D. and O?Dwyer, A. and Fornika, D. and KhunKhun, R.K. and Rodrigues, M. and Prystajecky, N. and Tyson, J. and Sekirov, I. and Zlosnik, J.E.A.
DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed10070192
2025SARS-CoV-2 and HCoV IgG Antibodies in the Breast Milk of a Postpartum SARS-CoV-2 Patient Following Bamlanivimab Administration: A Case Report
Covid
Tanunliong, G. and Condin, C. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Li, S. and Binning, N. and Gibson, M. and Griffiths, B. and Wright, A. and Money, D. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M. and Jassem, A.N. and Haljan, G. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.3390/covid5080123
2025Mycobacterium heckeshornense tenosynovitis: Case report and literature review
British Columbia Medical Journal
Werry, D. and Eshtiaghi, P. and Trippell, L.D. and Masud, S. and Sekirov, I. and Mirzanejad, Y. and Wong, P.H.P.
2025Treatment of drug-resistant tuberculosis with bedaquiline, pretomanid, linezolid with or without moxifloxacin (BPaL/M): Feasibility and implementation challenges in western Canada
Jammi
Muir, P. and Cook, V.J. and Sekirov, I. and Johnston, J. and Connors, W.J.
DOI: 10.3138/jammi-2024-0034
2025Seroprevalence of Respiratory Syncytial Virus in the Antenatal Population in British Columbia: A Cross-Sectional Study
Ssrn
Beitari, S. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Valadbeigy, T. and Luk, D. and Jassem, A. and McClymont, E. and Money, D. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.5718812
2025Series 2: Development of a Multiplex Amplicon Next Generation Sequencing Assay for Rapid Assessment of Resistance-Associated Mutations in M. tuberculosis Clinical Cases
Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
Cabrera, A. and Lee, T. and Kolehmainen, K. and Hird, T. and Jorgensen, D. and Lo, C.K.-F. and Hamze, H. and O?Dwyer, A. and Fornika, D. and KhunKhun, R.K. and Rodrigues, M. and Prystajecky, N. and Tyson, J. and Zlosnik, J.E.A. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed10070194
2025Clinical Application of Phage Immunoprecipitation Sequencing to Diagnose Enterovirus D68 as the Underlying Etiology in a Case of Guillain-Barré Syndrome
Journal of Infectious Diseases
Li, F.F. and Faber, A. and Caleta, J.M. and Goldfarb, D.M. and Sekirov, I. and Prystajecky, N.A. and Srigley, J.A. and Mishaal, R. and Jassem, A.N.
DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiae411
2025COVID-19 serological survey utilizing antenatal serum samples in British Columbia
Vaccine
M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Beitari, S. and Valadbeigy, T. and Sbihi, H. and Zlosnik, J. and Forward, L. and Mansour, S. and Nesbitt, Z. and Tanunliong, G. and Krajden, M. and Jassem, A. and Sekirov, I. and Money, D. and Atkinson, A. and Albert, A. and McClymont, E. and Andrade, J. and Beach, L. and Bolotin, S. and Boucoiran, I. and Bullard, J. and Charlton, C. and Crane, J. and Dougan, S. and Forest, J.-C. and German, G.J. and Gigu{\`e}re, Y. and Girouard, G. and Hankins, C. and Krajden, M. and Lang, A. and Levett, P. and Minion, J. and Neudorf, C. and Poliquin, V. and Robinson, J.L. and Scott, H. and Stein, D.R. and Tran, V. and Zahariadis, G. and Zhou, H.Y.
DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2025.127310
2025Humoral immunity to endemic coronaviruses in older adults increases post-COVID-19 vaccination and in correlation with their anti-SARS-CoV-2 responses
Medrxiv
Woodward, S.E. and McMillan, B. and Gaultier, G.N. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Valadbeigy, T. and Simmons, K. and Nikiforuk, A.M. and Bartlett, S.R. and Sekirov, I. and Morshed, M. and Sadarangani, M. and Jassem, A.N.
DOI: 10.1101/2025.08.26.25334476
2025Maternal-infant transfer of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies following vaccination in pregnancy: A prospective cohort study
Vaccine
Korchinski, I. and Marquez, C. and McClymont, E. and Av-Gay, G. and Andrade, J. and Elwood, C. and Jassem, A. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M. and Sadarangani, M. and Tanunliong, G. and Sekirov, I. and Money, D.
DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2024.07.024
2024Factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection in unvaccinated children and young adults
BMC Infectious Diseases
Silverberg, S.L. and Shulha, H.P. and McMillan, B. and He, G. and Lee, A. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Bartlett, S.R. and Gill, V. and Abu-Raya, B. and Bettinger, J.A. and Cabrera, A. and Coombs, D. and Gantt, S. and Goldfarb, D.M. and Sauv{\'e}, L. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I. and Jassem, A.N. and Sadarangani, M.
DOI: 10.1186/s12879-023-08950-1
2024Early prediction of Mycobacterium tuberculosis transmission clusters using supervised learning models
Medrxiv
Gharamaleki, O.G. and Colijn, C. and Sekirov, I. and Johnston, J.C. and Sobkowiak, B.
DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.16.24305900
2024Adaptive immune responses to two-dose COVID-19 vaccine series in healthy Canadian adults = 50 years: a prospective, observational cohort study
Scientific Reports
Gaultier, G.N. and McMillan, B. and Poloni, C. and Lo, M. and Cai, B. and Zheng, J.J. and Baer, H.M. and Shulha, H.P. and Simmons, K. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Bartlett, S.R. and Cook, L. and Levings, M.K. and Steiner, T. and Sekirov, I. and Zlosnik, J.E.A. and Morshed, M. and Skowronski, D.M. and Krajden, M. and Jassem, A.N. and Sadarangani, M.
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-59535-0
2024Evaluation of Whole Genome Sequencing-Based Predictions of Antimicrobial Resistance to TB First Line Agents: A Lesson from 5 Years of Data
International Journal of Molecular Sciences
Sharma, M.K. and Stobart, M. and Akochy, P.-M. and Adam, H. and Janella, D. and Rabb, M. and Alawa, M. and Sekirov, I. and Tyrrell, G.J. and Soualhine, H.
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25116245
2024Characterising the molecular epidemiology of human parechovirus in young infants in the UK and Canada
Journal of Clinical Virology
Kadambari, S. and Harvala, H. and Nguyen, D. and Sadarangani, M. and Martin, N.G. and Al-Rawahi, G.N. and Sekirov, I. and Defres, S. and Solomon, T. and Golubchik, T. and Bowden, R. and Pollard, A.J. and Simmonds, P.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcv.2024.105715
2024Evaluation of GeneXpert MTB/Rif Ultra assay performance on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues for Mycobacterium tuberculosis detection
Journal of Medical Microbiology
Lo, C.K.-F. and Purych, D. and Sekirov, I. and Khattra, J. and Hird, T.J. and Masud, S.
DOI: 10.1099/jmm.0.001918
2024Clinical utility and interpretive guidance for SARS-CoV-2 serological testing
Clinical Microbiology Newsletter
Morshed, M. and Jassem, A. and Luk, D. and Cheong, A. and Krajden, M. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1016/j.clinmicnews.2024.03.001
2023Whole Genome Sequencing based Identification of Human Tuberculosis caused by Animal-lineage Mycobacterium orygis
Biorxiv
Islam, M.R. and Sharma, M.K. and KhunKhun, R. and Shandro, C. and Sekirov, I. and Tyrrell, G.J. and Soualhine, H.
DOI: 10.1101/2023.02.27.530375
2023Whole genome sequencing-based identification of human tuberculosis caused by animal-lineage Mycobacterium orygis
Journal of Clinical Microbiology
Islam, M.R. and Sharma, M.K. and KhunKhun, R. and Shandro, C. and Sekirov, I. and Tyrrell, G.J. and Soualhine, H.
DOI: 10.1128/jcm.00260-23
2023Uptake of SARS-CoV-2 vaccination among structurally-marginalized people who use drugs in Vancouver, Canada
Scientific Reports
Reddon, H. and Barker, B. and Bartlett, S. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Sekirov, I. and Jassem, A. and Morshed, M. and Clemens, A. and Beck McGreevy, P. and Hayashi, K. and DeBeck, K. and Krajden, M. and Milloy, M.-J. and Soc{\'i}as, M.E.
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-44069-8
2023Nasopharyngeal Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2) Expression as a Risk-Factor for SARS-CoV-2 Transmission in Concurrent Hospital Associated Outbreaks
Medrxiv
Nikiforuk, A.M. and Kuchinski, K.S. and Short, K. and Roman, S. and Irvine, M.A. and Prystajecky, N. and Jassem, A.N. and Patrick, D.M. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.20.23287264
2023A comparison of sampling and testing approaches for the surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in farmed American mink
Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation
Himsworth, C.G. and Caleta, J.M. and Coombe, M. and McGregor, G. and Dibernardo, A. and Lindsay, R. and Sekirov, I. and Prystajecky, N.
DOI: 10.1177/10406387231183685
2023Hands off the Mink! Using Environmental Sampling for SARS-CoV-2 Surveillance in American Mink
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Boyd, E. and Coombe, M. and Prystajecky, N. and Caleta, J.M. and Sekirov, I. and Tyson, J. and Himsworth, C.
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20021248
2023Comparing Mycobacterium tuberculosis transmission reconstruction models from whole genome sequence data
Epidemiology and Infection
Sobkowiak, B. and Romanowski, K. and Sekirov, I. and Gardy, J.L. and Johnston, J.C.
DOI: 10.1017/S0950268823000900
2023Chapter 3: Diagnosis of active tuberculosis and drug-resistant tuberculosis,Chapitre 3: Le diagnostic de la tuberculose active et de la tuberculose pharmacorésistante
Canadian Journal of Respiratory Critical Care and Sleep Medicine
Behr, M.A. and Lapierre, S.G. and Kunimoto, D.Y. and Lee, R.S. and Long, R. and Sekirov, I. and Soualhine, H. and Turenne, C.Y.
DOI: 10.1080/24745332.2023.2226000
2023Risk of hospital admission and death from first-ever SARS-CoV-2 infection by age group during the Delta and Omicron periods in British Columbia, Canada
CMAJ Canadian Medical Association Journal
Skowronski, D.M. and Kaweski, S.E. and Irvine, M.A. and Chuang, E.S.Y. and Kim, S. and Sabaiduc, S. and Reyes, R.C. and Henry, B. and Sekirov, I. and Smolina, K.
DOI: 10.1503/cmaj.230721
2023Factors associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 infection in unvaccinated children and young adults
Medrxiv
Silverberg, S.L. and Shulha, H.P. and McMillan, B. and He, G. and Lee, A. and M{\'a}rquez, C. and Bartlett, S.R. and Gill, V. and Abu-Raya, B. and Bettinger, J.A. and Cabrera, A. and Coombs, D. and Gantt, S. and Goldfarb, D.M. and Sauv{\'e}, L. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I. and Jassem, A.N. and Sadarangani, M.
DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.13.23294036
2023Adaptive immune responses to two-dose COVID-19 vaccine series in healthy Canadian adults > 50 years: a prospective, observational cohort study
Research Square
Gaultier, G.N. and McMillan, B. and Poloni, C. and Lo, M. and Cai, B. and Zheng, J.J. and Baer, H.M. and Shulha, H. and Simmons, K. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Bartlett, S.R. and Cook, L. and Levings, M.K. and Steiner, T. and Sekirov, I. and Zlosnik, J.E.A. and Morshed, M. and Skowronski, D.M. and Krajden, M. and Jassem, A.N. and Sadarangani, M.
DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3214357
2023Performance of Immunoglobulin G Serology on Finger Prick Capillary Dried Blood Spot Samples to Detect a SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Response
Microbiology Spectrum
Nikiforuk, A.M. and McMillan, B. and Bartlett, S.R. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Pidduck, T. and Kustra, J. and Goldfarb, D.M. and Barakauskas, V. and Sinclair, G. and Patrick, D.M. and Sadarangani, M. and Ogilvie, G.S. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I. and Jassem, A.N.
DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.01405-21
2022Persistence of Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Long Term Care Residents Over Seven Months After Two COVID-19 Outbreaks
Frontiers in Immunology
Tanunliong, G. and Liu, A. and Vijh, R. and Pidduck, T. and Kustra, J. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Choi, A. and McLennan, M. and Hayden, A. and Kearney, C. and Gantt, S. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M. and Jassem, A.N. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.775420
2022The Role of Nucleic Acid Amplification and Sequencing
World Scientific Series in Global Health Economics and Public Policy
Lam, F. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1142/9789811249723_0005
2022Mycobacterium fortuitum peritoneal dialysis-related peritonitis in a child: A case report and review of the literature
Jammi
Haubrich, K. and Mammen, C. and Sekirov, I. and Mitchell, H.
DOI: 10.3138/jammi-2021-0029
2022Characterizing Longitudinal Antibody Responses in Recovered Individuals Following COVID-19 Infection and Single-Dose Vaccination in British Columbia, Canada: A Prospective Cohort Study
Medrxiv
Olmstead, A.D. and Nikiforuk, A.M. and Schwartz, S. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Valadbeigy, T. and Flores, E. and Saran, M. and Goldfarb, D.M. and Hayden, A. and Masud, S. and Jassem, A.N. and Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1101/2022.09.28.22280429
2022A novel multiplex electrochemiluminescent immunoassay for detection and quantification of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG and anti-seasonal endemic human coronavirus IgG
Journal of Clinical Virology
Li, F.F. and Liu, A. and Gibbs, E. and Tanunliong, G. and Marquez, A.C. and Gantt, S. and Frykman, H. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M. and Prystajecky, N.A. and Cashman, N. and Sekirov, I. and Jassem, A.N.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcv.2021.105050
2022Erratum: Performance of Immunoglobulin G Serology on Finger Prick Capillary Dried Blood Spot Samples to Detect a SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Response (Microbiology Spectrum (2022) 10:2 (e01405-21) DOI: 10.1128/Spectrum01405-21)
Microbiology Spectrum
Nikiforuk, A.M. and McMillan, B. and Bartlett, S.R. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Pidduck, T. and Kustra, J. and Goldfarb, D.M. and Barakauskas, V. and Sinclair, G. and Patrick, D.M. and Sadarangani, M. and Ogilvie, G.S. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I. and Jassem, A.N.
DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.03376-22
2022Compilation of 10 Years of MIRU-VNTR Data: Canadian National Tuberculosis Laboratory's Experience
Canadian Journal of Infectious Diseases and Medical Microbiology
Sharma, M.K. and Janella, D. and McGurran, A. and Corbett, C. and Adam, H. and Akochy, P.-M. and Haldane, D. and Mackenzie, H. and Minion, J. and Needle, R. and Newberry, C. and Patterson, M. and Sekirov, I. and Tyrrell, G. and Soualhine, H.
DOI: 10.1155/2022/3505142
2022Comparing transmission reconstruction models with Mycobacterium tuberculosis whole genome sequence data
Biorxiv
Sobkowiak, B. and Romanowski, K. and Sekirov, I. and Gardy, J.L. and Johnston, J.
DOI: 10.1101/2022.01.07.475333
2022Simple approximation of sample size for precise estimates of SARS-CoV-2 infection from point-seroprevalence studies
Public Health
Nikiforuk, A.M. and Sekirov, I. and Jassem, A.N.
DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2022.08.008
2022SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant: Antibody evasion and cryo-EM structure of spike protein–ACE2 complex
Science
Mannar, D. and Saville, J.W. and Zhu, X. and Srivastava, S.S. and Berezuk, A.M. and Tuttle, K.S. and Marquez, A.C. and Sekirov, I. and Subramaniam, S.
DOI: 10.1126/science.abn7760
2022Characterizing Longitudinal Antibody Responses in Recovered Individuals Following COVID-19 Infection and Single-Dose Vaccination: A Prospective Cohort Study
Viruses
Olmstead, A.D. and Nikiforuk, A.M. and Schwartz, S. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Valadbeigy, T. and Flores, E. and Saran, M. and Goldfarb, D.M. and Hayden, A. and Masud, S. and Russell, S.L. and Prystajecky, N. and Jassem, A.N. and Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.3390/v14112416
2022Serial cross-sectional estimation of vaccine and infection-induced SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in children and adults, British Columbia, Canada: March 2020 to August 2022
Medrxiv
Skowronski, D.M. and Kaweski, S.E. and Irvine, M.A. and Kim, S. and Chuang, E.S.Y. and Sabaiduc, S. and Fraser, M. and Reyes, R.C. and Henry, B. and Levett, P.N. and Petric, M. and Krajden, M. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1101/2022.09.09.22279751
2022Erratum: Evaluating Humoral Immunity against SARS-CoV-2: Validation of a Plaque-Reduction Neutralization Test and a Multilaboratory Comparison of Conventional and Surrogate Neutralization Assays (Microbiology Spectrum (2021) 9:3 (e00886-21) DOI: 10.1128/Spectrum.00886-21)
Microbiology Spectrum
Valcourt, E.J. and Manguiat, K. and Robinson, A. and Lin, Y.-C. and Abe, K.T. and Mubarek, S. and Shigayev, A. and Zhong, Z. and Girardin, R.C. and DuPuis, A. and Payne, A. and McDonough, K. and Wang, Z. and Gasser, R. and Laumaea, A. and Benlarbi, M. and Richard, J. and Pr{\'e}vost, J. and Anand, S.P. and Dimitrova, K. and Phillipson, C. and Evans, D.H. and McGeer, A. and Gingras, A.-C. and Liang, C. and Petric, M. and Sekirov, I. and Morshed, M. and Finzi, A. and Drebot, M. and Wood, H.
DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.00553-22
2022Chapter 3: Diagnosis of tuberculosis disease and drug-resistant tuberculosis
Canadian Journal of Respiratory Critical Care and Sleep Medicine
Behr, M.A. and Lapierre, S.G. and Kunimoto, D.Y. and Lee, R.S. and Long, R. and Sekirov, I. and Soualhine, H. and Turenne, C.Y.
DOI: 10.1080/24745332.2022.2035638
2022Age-Associated Seroprevalence of Coronavirus Antibodies: Population-Based Serosurveys in 2013 and 2020, British Columbia, Canada
Frontiers in Immunology
Tanunliong, G. and Liu, A.C. and Kaweski, S. and Irvine, M. and Reyes, R.C. and Purych, D. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I. and Gantt, S. and Skowronski, D.M. and Jassem, A.N.
DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.836449
2022Waning Immunity Against Respiratory Syncytial Virus during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic
Journal of Infectious Diseases
Reicherz, F. and Xu, R.Y. and Abu-Raya, B. and Majdoubi, A. and Michalski, C. and Golding, L. and Stojic, A. and Vineta, M. and Granoski, M. and Cieslak, Z. and Chacko, A. and Desai, N. and Sekirov, I. and Marchant, D.J. and Lavoie, P.M.
DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiac192
2022Structural and biochemical rationale for enhanced spike protein fitness in delta and kappa SARS-CoV-2 variants
Nature Communications
Saville, J.W. and Mannar, D. and Zhu, X. and Srivastava, S.S. and Berezuk, A.M. and Demers, J.-P. and Zhou, S. and Tuttle, K.S. and Sekirov, I. and Kim, A. and Li, W. and Dimitrov, D.S. and Subramaniam, S.
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-28324-6
2022Serial cross-sectional estimation of vaccineand infection-induced SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in British Columbia, Canada
CMAJ Canadian Medical Association Journal
Skowronski, D.M. and Kaweski, S.E. and Irvine, M.A. and Kim, S. and Chuang, E.S.Y. and Sabaiduc, S. and Fraser, M. and Reyes, R.C. and Henry, B. and Levett, P.N. and Petric, M. and Krajden, M. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1503/cmaj.221335
2022Evaluating Humoral Immunity against SARS-CoV-2: Validation of a Plaque-Reduction Neutralization Test and a Multilaboratory Comparison of Conventional and Surrogate Neutralization Assays
Microbiology Spectrum
Valcourt, E.J. and Manguiat, K. and Robinson, A. and Lin, Y.-C. and Abe, K.T. and Mubareka, S. and Shigayeva, A. and Zhong, Z. and Girardin, R.C. and DuPuis, A. and Payne, A. and McDonough, K. and Wang, Z. and Gasser, R. and Laumaea, A. and Benlarbi, M. and Richard, J. and Pr{\'e}vost, J. and Anand, S.P. and Dimitrova, K. and Phillipson, C. and McGeer, A. and Gingras, A.-C. and Liang, C. and Petric, M. and Sekirov, I. and Morshed, M. and Finzi, A. and Drebot, M. and Wood, H.
DOI: 10.1128/Spectrum.00886-21
2021SARS-CoV-2 serology: Validation of high-throughput chemiluminescent immunoassay (CLIA) platforms and a field study in British Columbia
Journal of Clinical Virology
Sekirov, I. and Barakauskas, V.E. and Simons, J. and Cook, D. and Bates, B. and Burns, L. and Masud, S. and Charles, M. and McLennan, M. and Mak, A. and Chahil, N. and Vijh, R. and Hayden, A. and Goldfarb, D. and Levett, P.N. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcv.2021.104914
2021Repeat virological and serological profiles in hospitalized patients initially tested by nasopharyngeal RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2
Journal of Medical Virology
Reich, N. and Lowe, C.F. and Puddicombe, D. and Matic, N. and Greiner, J. and Simons, J. and Leung, V. and Chu, T. and Naik, H. and Myles, N. and Burns, L. and Romney, M.G. and Ritchie, G. and Champagne, S. and Dooley, K. and Sekirov, I. and Stefanovic, A.
DOI: 10.1002/jmv.27227
2021Population SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence Using Antenatal Serum Samples in British Columbia, Canada
Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada
McClymont, E. and Elwood, C. and Sekirov, I. and Morshed, M. and Levett, P. and Liu, A. and Jassem, A. and Sbihi, H. and Ogilvie, G. and Krajden, M. and Money, D.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jogc.2021.06.001
2021Neutrophils as a pallbearer for SARS-CoV-2 disease burden
Lancet Microbe
Twa, D.D. and Lukac, C.D. and Kuchinski, K. and Nikiforuk, A. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1016/S2666-5247(21)00002-1
2021Needle in a haystack: Looking for tuberculosis in a low-incidence setting
Jammi
Eckbo, E.J. and Rodrigues, M. and Hird, T. and Ng, M. and Lam, K. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.3138/jammi-2020-0022
2021Diagnostic accuracy of RT-PCR for detection of SARS-CoV-2 compared to a “composite reference standard” in hospitalized patients
Medrxiv
Reich, N. and Lowe, C.F. and Puddicombe, D. and Matic, N. and Greiner, J. and Simons, J. and Leung, V. and Chu, T. and Naik, H. and Myles, N. and Burns, L. and Romney, M.G. and Ritchie, G. and Champagne, S. and Dooley, K. and Sekirov, I. and Stefanovic, A.
DOI: 10.1101/2021.02.18.21252016
2021A majority of uninfected adults show preexisting antibody reactivity against SARS-CoV-2
Jci Insight
Majdoubi, A. and Michalski, C. and O?Connell, S.E. and Dada, S. and Narpala, S. and Gelinas, J. and Mehta, D. and Cheung, C. and Winkler, D.F.H. and Basappa, M. and Liu, A.C. and G{\"o}rges, M. and Barakauskas, V.E. and Irvine, M. and Mehalko, J. and Esposito, D. and Sekirov, I. and Jassem, A.N. and Goldfarb, D.M. and Pelech, S. and Douek, D.C. and McDermott, A.B. and Lavoie, P.M.
DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.146316
2021The contrasting role of nasopharyngeal angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) transcription in SARS-CoV-2 infection: A cross-sectional study of people tested for COVID-19 in British Columbia, Canada
Ebiomedicine
Nikiforuk, A.M. and Kuchinski, K.S. and Twa, D.D.W. and Lukac, C.D. and Sbihi, H. and Basham, C.A. and Steidl, C. and Prystajecky, N.A. and Jassem, A.N. and Krajden, M. and Patrick, D.M. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103316
2021Latent Tuberculosis Therapy Outcomes in Dialysis Patients: A Retrospective Cohort
American Journal of Kidney Diseases
Chiang, L.Y. and Baumann, B. and Romanowski, K. and Kumar, D. and Campbell, J.R. and Djurdjev, O. and Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I. and Cook, V.J. and Levin, A. and Johnston, J.C.
DOI: 10.1053/j.ajkd.2020.06.017
2021Evaluation of commercial SARS-CoV-2 serological assays in Canadian public health laboratories
Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease
Stein, D.R. and Osiowy, C. and Gretchen, A. and Thorlacius, L. and Fudge, D. and Lang, A. and Sekirov, I. and Morshed, M. and Levett, P.N. and Tran, V. and Kus, J.V. and Gubbay, J. and Mohan, V. and Charlton, C. and Kanji, J.N. and Tipples, G. and Serhir, B. and Therrien, C. and Roger, M. and Jiao, L. and Zahariadis, G. and Needle, R. and Gilbert, L. and Desnoyers, G. and Garceau, R. and Bouhtiauy, I. and Longtin, J. and El-Gabalawy, N. and Dibernardo, A. and Lindsay, L.R. and Drebot, M.
DOI: 10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2021.115412
2021Comparative Analysis of Capillary vs Venous Blood for Serologic Detection of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies by RPOC Lateral Flow Tests
Open Forum Infectious Diseases
Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I. and McLennan, M. and Levett, P.N. and Chahil, N. and Mak, A. and Carruthers, E. and Pidduck, T. and Kustra, J. and Laley, J. and Lee, M.-K. and Chu, K. and Burgess, F. and Vijh, R. and Willis, L. and Wada, R. and Blancaflor, R. and Boraston, S. and Hayden, A. and Krajden, M.
DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofab043
2021Serological survey following SARS-COV-2 outbreaks at long-term care facilities in metro Vancouver, British Columbia: Implications for outbreak management and infection control policies
American Journal of Infection Control
Vijh, R. and Ghafari, C. and Hayden, A. and Schwandt, M. and Sekirov, I. and Morshed, M. and Levett, P. and Krajden, M. and Boraston, S. and Daly, P. and Lysyshyn, M. and Harding, J. and McLennan, M. and Chahil, N. and Mak, A. and McKee, G.
DOI: 10.1016/j.ajic.2020.10.009
2021Risk following a severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) exposure from a nocturnal hemodialysis patient utilizing continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP)
Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology
Lowe, C.F. and Kiaii, M. and Aparicio, L. and Chinybaeva, L. and Coughlin, S. and Sekirov, I. and Morshed, M.G. and Leung, V.
DOI: 10.1017/ice.2020.291
2021Comprehensive Immune Profiling of a Kidney Transplant Recipient With Peri-Operative SARS-CoV-2 Infection: A Case Report
Frontiers in Immunology
Sherwood, K.R. and Nicholl, D.D.M. and Fenninger, F. and Wu, V. and Wong, P. and Benedicto, V. and Cina, D.P. and Wang, M. and Pobran, T.D. and De Marco, M.L. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Jassem, A.N. and Sekirov, I. and Morshed, M.G. and Bardi, M. and Sekhon, M. and Keown, P. and Kadatz, M. and Lan, J.H.
DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.753558
2021Performance comparison of micro-neutralization assays based on surrogate SARS-CoV-2 and WT SARS-CoV-2 in assessing virus-neutralizing capacity of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies
Access Microbiology
Sekirov, I. and Petric, M. and Carruthers, E. and Lawrence, D. and Pidduck, T. and Kustra, J. and Laley, J. and Lee, M.-K. and Chahil, N. and Mak, A. and Levett, P.N. and Mendoza, E. and Wood, H. and Drebot, M. and Krajden, M. and Morshed, M.
DOI: 10.1099/acmi.0.000257
2021Performance of immunoglobulin G serology on finger prick capillary dried blood spot samples to measure SARS-CoV-2 humoral immunogenicity
Medrxiv
Nikiforuk, A.M. and McMillan, B. and Bartlett, S.R. and M{\'a}rquez, A.C. and Pidduck, T. and Kustra, J. and Goldfarb, D.M. and Barakauskas, V. and Sinclair, G. and Patrick, D.M. and Sadarangani, M. and Ogilvie, G.S. and Morshed, M. and Sekirov, I. and Jassem, A.N.
DOI: 10.1101/2021.07.29.21261156
2021Low SARS-CoV-2 sero-prevalence based on anonymized residual sero-survey before and after first wave measures in British Columbia, Canada, March-May 2020
Medrxiv
Skowronski, D.M. and Sekirov, I. and Sabaiduc, S. and Zou, M. and Morshed, M. and Lawrence, D. and Smolina, K. and Ahmed, M.A. and Galanis, E. and Fraser, M.N. and Singal, M. and Naus, M. and Patrick, D.M. and Kaweski, S.E. and Mill, C. and Reyes, R.C. and Kelly, M.T. and Levett, P.N. and Petric, M. and Henry, B. and Krajden, M.
DOI: 10.1101/2020.07.13.20153148
2020Effectiveness of Latent TB Screening and Treatment in People Initiating Dialysis in British Columbia, Canada
Canadian Journal of Kidney Health and Disease
Romanowski, K. and Rose, C. and Cook, V.J. and Sekirov, I. and Morshed, M. and Djurdjev, O. and Levin, A. and Johnston, J.C.
DOI: 10.1177/2054358120937104
2020The Contrasting Role of Nasopharyngeal Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2) Expression in SARS-CoV-2 Infection: A Cross-Sectional Study of People Tested for COVID-19 in British Columbia
Medrxiv
Nikiforuk, A.M. and Kuchinski, K.S. and Twa, D.D.W. and Lukac, C.D. and Sbihi, H. and Basham, C.A. and Steidl, C. and Prystajecky, N.A. and Jassem, A.N. and Krajden, M. and Patrick, D.M. and Sekirov, I.
DOI: 10.1101/2020.11.23.20237206
2020Emergence of a clone of invasive fuck-negative serotype e haemophilus influenzae in British Columbia
Jammi
Whyte, K.E. and Hoang, L. and Sekirov, I. and Shuel, M.L. and Hoang, W. and Tsang, R.S.W.
DOI: 10.3138/jammi.2019-0015
2020TB diagnosis: Are we culturing enough biopsies?
British Columbia Medical Journal
Yeong, S.-K. and Masud, S. and Xiong, W. and Wong, J. and Sekirov, I.
2019Epidemiologic and genotypic review of carbapenemase-producing organisms in British Columbia, Canada, between 2008 and 2014
Journal of Clinical Microbiology
Sekirov, I. and Croxen, M.A. and Ng, C. and Azana, R. and Chang, Y. and Mataseje, L. and Boyd, D. and Mangat, C. and Mack, B. and Tadros, M. and Brodkin, E. and Kibsey, P. and Stefanovic, A. and Champagne, S. and Mulvey, M.R. and Hoang, L.M.N.
DOI: 10.1128/JCM.02289-15
2016In vitro efficacy of N-acetylcysteine on bacteria associated with chronic suppurative otitis media
Journal of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery
Lea, J. and Conlin, A.E. and Sekirov, I. and Restelli, V. and Ayakar, K.G. and Turnbull, L. and Doyle, P. and Noble, M. and Rennie, R. and Schreiber, W.E. and Westerberg, B.D.
DOI: 10.1186/1916-0216-43-20
2014Neutrophil Elastase Alters the Murine Gut Microbiota Resulting in Enhanced Salmonella Colonization
Plos One
Gill, N. and Ferreira, R.B.R. and Antunes, L.C.M. and Willing, B.P. and Sekirov, I. and Al-Zahrani, F. and Hartmann, M. and Finlay, B.B.
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0049646
2012Salmonella SPI-1-mediated neutrophil recruitment during enteric colitis is associated with reduction and alteration in intestinal microbiota
Gut Microbes
Sekirov, I. and Gill, N. and Jogova, M. and Tam, N. and Robertson, M. and de Llanos, R. and Li, Y. and Finlay, B.B.
DOI: 10.4161/gmic.1.1.10950
2010Gut microbiota in health and disease
Physiological Reviews
Sekirov, I. and Russell, S.L. and Caetano M Antunes, L. and Finlay, B.B.
DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00045.2009
2010The role of the intestinal microbiota in enteric infection
Journal of Physiology
Sekirov, I. and Finlay, B.B.
DOI: 10.1113/jphysiol.2009.172742
2009Antibiotic-induced perturbations of the intestinal microbiota alter host susceptibility to enteric infection
Infection and Immunity
Sekirov, I. and Tam, N.M. and Jogova, M. and Robertson, M.L. and Li, Y. and Lupp, C. and Finlay, B.B.
DOI: 10.1128/IAI.00319-08
2008Type III secretion systems and disease
Clinical Microbiology Reviews
Coburn, B. and Sekirov, I. and Finlay, B.B.
DOI: 10.1128/CMR.00013-07
2007Host-Mediated Inflammation Disrupts the Intestinal Microbiota and Promotes the Overgrowth of Enterobacteriaceae
Cell Host and Microbe
Lupp, C. and Robertson, M.L. and Wickham, M.E. and Sekirov, I. and Champion, O.L. and Gaynor, E.C. and Finlay, B.B.
DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2007.06.010
2007Host-Mediated Inflammation Disrupts the Intestinal Microbiota and Promotes the Overgrowth of Enterobacteriaceae (DOI:10.1016/j.chom.2007.06.010)
Cell Host and Microbe
Lupp, C. and Robertson, M.L. and Wickham, M.E. and Sekirov, I. and Champion, O.L. and Gaynor, E.C. and Finlay, B.~.
DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2007.08.002
2007Cross reactivity of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7-specific sera with non-O157 serotypes
Vaccine
Asper, D.J. and Sekirov, I. and Finlay, B.B. and Rogan, D. and Potter, A.A.
DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2007.09.054
2007Human and microbe: United we stand
Nature Medicine
Sekirov, I. and Finlay, B.B.
DOI: 10.1038/nm0706-736
2006Effects of endothelin receptor blockade on hypervasoreactivity in streptozotocin-diabetic rats: Vessel-specific involvement of thromboxane A 2
Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
Arikawa, E. and Cheung, C. and Sekirov, I. and Battell, M.L. and Yuen, V.G. and McNeill, J.H.
DOI: 10.1139/Y06-042
2006Identification and characterization of NleA, a non-LEE-encoded type III translocated virulence factor of enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7
Molecular Microbiology
Gruenheid, S. and Sekirov, I. and Thomas, N.A. and Deng, W. and O{'}Donnell, P. and Goode, D. and Li, Y. and Frey, E.A. and Brown, N.F. and Metalnikov, P. and Pawson, T. and Ashman, K. and Finlay, B.B.
DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2958.2003.03911.x
2004Chronic thromboxane synthase inhibition prevents fructose-induced hypertension
Hypertension
Galipeau, D. and Arikawa, E. and Sekirov, I. and McNeill, J.H.
DOI: 10.1161/hyp.38.4.872
2001 - Research
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Evaluating the role of cervicovaginal microbiome in progression of HPV infection and CIN outcomes (FOCAL MOMENTUM)
This project is funded by the VFoundation for cancer research (PI Dr. Gina Ogilvie). It capitalizes on an existing and well characterized sample set collected during the FOCAL study, which was pivotal in prompting the shift to HPV-based cervical cancer screening. The microbiome of the cervicovaginal samples is being characterized via cpn60 sequencing, which allows for enhanced resolution of cervicovaginal communities. To facilitate correlation with studies utilizing 16S-based analyses, a subset of samples will also have 16S-based characterization performed.
The results are linked to rich metadata that includes HPV- and CIN-related outcomes, as well as sociodemographic parameters. The main aims are to determine biomarkers in baseline cervicovaginal microbiomes of participants diagnosed with HPV that are associated with histologically confirmed progression to CIN2+ lesions vs.Evaluating SARS-CoV-2 and endemic coronaviruses serological responses in pregnancy
This project was funded by a CITF grant (PI Dr. Deb Money). It seeks to evaluate population level serological responses to SARS-CoV-2 and endemic coronaviruses in pregnant individuals. SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence was evaluated in cohorts of pregnant individuals over 3.5 years to correlate serological responses and their magnitude to individuals’ vaccination history and SARS-CoV-2 strains circulating in the BC population during the time. The same cohorts were evaluated with respect to serological responses to 4 endemic human coronaviruses and those responses correlated to SARS-CoV-2 responses. The study aimed to utilize population level samples to investigate cross-reactivity of serological responses to related coronaviruses and their correlation with SARS-CoV-2 vaccination history.
The adverse effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection on pregnancy outcomes has been described and the study also examined the correlation of the dynamics and functionality of serological responses to SARS-CoV-2 over time and pregnancy outcomes in a sub-group of participants. This project is nearing its completion.GrantsCo-Applicant. HPV FOCAL LEGACY: Longterm Evaluations of Gains in Cervical Cancer Prevention. Funding Source: CIHR
Co-Investigator. FOCAL MOMENTUM (MicrObiome Monitoring for ElimiNaTion of Cervical Cancer) Study. Funding Source: VFoundation
Principal Investigator. PILOT TB: Phylogenetic Improvements using Long-Read Sequencing for Understanding Transmission of M. tuberculosis. Funding Source: BC Lung Association
Co-Investigator. Linking Transmission Metadata to Viral Genotype and Serological Responses of COVID-19. Funding Source: CFI
Co-Investigator. One Health Genomics: COVID-19 Adaptation Investigation in Mink. Funding Source: Genome BC
Co-Investigator. CARE-COVID-19: Characterizing Antibody Response to Emerging COVID-19 Virus. Funding Source: Genome BC
Principal Investigator. PACEiiR: Prognostication of ACE II Receptor. Funding Source: Genome BC
Collaboration led by BCCHR researchers awarded European funding to improve community-based care in Uganda and Kenya
Dr. Matthew Wiens and colleagues at the Institute for Global Health are the first Canadian Team to lead a Horizon Europe Pillar 2 project that aims to reduce childhood deaths from severe infection (sepsis) after hospital discharge.
