Biography:

 

Inna Sekirov is a Medical Microbiologist at the BC Children’s and Women’s Hospital and a Clinical Associate Professor with the University of British Columbia’s Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. Her work bridges diagnostic assay development, genomics and next generation sequencing technologies, with a consistent focus on translational potential of research initiatives and their implementation within accredited clinical laboratories. She has a particular interest in the research field of human microbiome and its impact on disease progression. Dr. Sekirov is currently co-leading research projects that examine the role of vaginal microbiome in HPV infection progression. She is also seeking to establish a clinically relevant microbiome research program focused on vulnerable pediatric populations, such as the contributions of gut, respiratory and skin microbiome to sepsis, invasive fungal infections, colonization with multidrug resistant organisms and other relevant outcomes in hematological malignancy patients and neonates. She has extensive previous experience with mycobacterial genomics, including epidemiology and diagnostics, as well as with serological approaches to viral infections diagnostics and serosurveillance.