PROTECT COVID-19 Symposium

On 5-6 May 2022, researchers from across the PROTECT COVID-19 National Core Study on transmission and environment came together in London for the programme’s second major meeting.

The PROTECT Researcher Symposium 2022 marks the beginning of a new phase of the PROTECT programme, with the emphasis shifting from primary research activities to translational work, ensuring the results and learnings from our work are accessible and applicable by key stakeholder and end users. The event: 

  • Provided an opportunity for the PROTECT research community to come together to discuss and shape the direction of travel of this next phase, as well as sharing and reflecting back on the work of the PROTECT programme to date. 
  • Provided further opportunities for PROTECT researchers to connect and engage with each other cross-theme and cross-discipline. 
  • Provided Continuing Professional Development opportunities for PROTECT researchers of particular relevance to this next phase of the programme. 
  • Allowed for enhanced awareness of PROTECT’s place within the wider National Core Studies programme. 

Day 1 opened with a plenary talk from Professor Andrew Curran entitled “Securing our legacy: PROTECT’s final year and the transition to a longer-term solution for UK research capacity on respiratory disease transmission”, which was followed by stakeholder perspectives, and lightning talks grouped around the areas of modelling & transmission, COVID-19 prevalence, and experimental measurements.

Plenary session 2 started with Sir Patrick Vallance as he reflected on the National Core Studies (NCS) programme as a whole.  Additional talks focused on data and connectivity, epidemiology and surveillance and longitudinal health and wellbeing.  The day ended with 23 five-minute lightning talks.

Day 2 opened with a session to discuss cross-disciplinary collaborations around strategies to evaluate and improve ventilation, a deep-dive into Covid-19 transmission risk and mitigations in nuclear power stations in the UK and, looking at mitigations – taking results from modelling for application to the real world.

Final plenary talks were around securing funding for COVID-19 and other respiratory virus transmission research, accessing data via the ONS secure research service and, maximising policy impact.

Symposium Programme

Programme Day 1 - Thursday 5th May 2022

Plenary 1: Making PROTECT Count for Our Stakeholders
Chair: Professor Andrew Curran, Chief Scientific Adviser, Health and Safety Executive

Securing our legacy: PROTECT’s final year and the transition to a longer-term solution for UK research capacity on respiratory disease transmission
Professor Andrew Curran, Chief Scientific Adviser, Health and Safety Executive

Stakeholder perspectives

Seizing the opportunity for long term change
Dr Alexandra Smyth, Senior Policy Adviser, Royal Academy of Engineering
Download PDF: Seizing the opportunity for long term change

Where have all the lifeboats gone? Learning from lockdown
Steve Sylvester, Acting Head of Public Protection, Lancaster City Council
Download PDF: Where have all the lifeboats gone? Learning from lockdown

HSE: How Science Supported Policy and Regulation during the Pandemic
Dr John Rowe, Acting Head of Operational Strategy Branch, Engagement & Policy Division, Health and Safety Executive
Download PDF: HSE: How Science Supported Policy and Regulation during the Pandemic

Responding to stakeholder needs: Understanding of the role of ventilation
Professor Cath Noakes, University of Leeds

Plenary 2: PROTECT in Context: The National Core Studies Programme
Chair: Professor Andrew Curran, Chief Scientific Adviser, Health and Safety Executive

Reflections on the National Core Studies (NCS) programme
Sir Patrick Vallance, Chief Scientific Adviser, UK Government
Watch the video: Reflections on the National Core Studies (NCS) programme

Data and Connectivity NCS
Lara Edwards, Senior Programme Manager, Health Data Research UK
Dr Steven Kerr, Senior Research Fellow, University of Edinburgh
Download PDF: Data and Connectivity NCS

Epidemiology and Surveillance NCS
Dr Tristan Pett,Covid-19 Infection Survey, Analytical Development Lead, ONS
Dr Katie Cunliffe, Covid-19 Infection Survey, Senior Research Officer, ONS
Download PDF: Epidemiology and Surveillance NCS

Longitudinal Health and Wellbeing NCS
Dr Chloe Park, Senior Communications Manager, University College London
Dr Ellen Thompson, Postdoctoral Research Associate, King’s College London
Dr Milla Kibble, Research Facilitator, University of Cambridge
Download PDF: Longitudinal Health and Wellbeing NCS

 

Parallel sessions: PROTECT Research Lightning Talks

Programme Day 2 - Friday 6th May 2022

Parallel Session 2.1: Cross-disciplinary Collaboration Workshops

Workshop A: Strategies to evaluate and improve ventilation
Lead: Professor Cath Noakes, University of Leeds Cambridge

Workshop B: Understanding viral emission rates and dose-response at the micro-level
Lead: Mr Allan Bennett, UK Health Security Agency & Dr Simon Parker, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory and

Parallel Session 2.2: Cross-disciplinary Collaboration Workshops

Workshop C: Deep-dive into Covid-19 transmission risk and mitigations in nuclear power stations in the UK
Lead: Professor Martie Van Tongeren, University of Manchester

Workshop D: Looking at Mitigations, taking results from modelling for application to real World
Lead: Professor Cath Noakes, University of Leeds, & Dr Yiqun Chen, HSE

Plenary Session 3: CPD/skills Talks
Chair: Professor Andrew Curran, Chief Scientific Adviser, Health and Safety Executive

Securing funding for COVID-19 and other respiratory virus transmission research
Dr Jennifer Anderson, Head of Training and Careers, UKRI, Medical Research Council
Download PDF: Securing funding for COVID-19 and other respiratory virus transmission research

Dr Jennifer Anderson is Head of Training and Careers (MRC). Her role involves overseeing MRC’s strategy for, and investment Headshot of Dr Jennifer Anderson in, studentships and personal fellowships to ensure we train, attract and retain the skilled individuals that make the UK a leader in biomedical research. Prior to joining MRC in 2015, she completed a PhD in cancer cell biology and spent 8 years as a postdoc researching radiation biology.

Accessing Data via the ONS Secure Research Service
Dr Beth Routley, Senior Researcher, Secure Research Service,ONS

Closing Plenary

Wrap-up and reflections; announcement and presentation of award for best poster presentation (as voted for by fellow PROTECT researchers during the event)
Professor Andrew Curran, Chief Scientific Adviser, Health and Safety Executive

Lightening Talks – Groupings by Session

Speakers

Day 1

Chair: Professor Andrew Curran, Chief Scientific Adviser, Health and Safety Executive

Professor Andrew Curran is the Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) and Director of Research at the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).Round headshot of Professor Andrew Curran During his 29-year career with HSE he has been a bench scientist, has led a number of teams, and has a significant publication record in the field of occupational health and safety. He has responsibility for ensuring that HSE has access to the evidence it needs to underpin policy and regulatory decision making. He is also Head of Profession for HSE’s scientists, engineers and physicians, and sits on the Government’s GSE Professions Board, where he is also Deputy Head of the Profession under Sir Patrick Vallance. Andrew is part of the Government CSA network, and during the COVID-19 pandemic has been an active participant in the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), as well as leading the PROTECT National Core Study. He has oversight of HSE’s Scientific Advisory Committee on Workplace Health, is the Chair of the Sheffield Group (the global network of national health and safety research organisations), a member of the Steering Group of PEROSH (the Partnership for European Research in Occupational Safety and Health), and supports HSE’s role as a Collaborating Centre in Occupational Safety and Health. Andrew is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology and the Chartered Management Institute, an Honorary Fellow of the UK Faculty of Occupational Medicine, and an Honorary Professor at the universities of Sheffield and Manchester, where he co-Directs the Centre for Workplace Health and the Thomas Ashton Institute for Risk and Regulatory Research respectively.

Dr Alexandra Smyth, Senior Policy Adviser, Royal Academy of Engineering

Steve Sylvester, Commercial Protection Manager and Acting Head of Public Protection, Lancaster City Council

Steve qualified as an Environmental Health Officer (EHO) from Salford University in 1990 and has spent the last 30 years working acrossHeadshot of Dr Steven Sylvester a number of Local Authorities in Public Protection delivering operational services covering Food Safety, Health and Safety, Housing Standards, and Environmental Protection, before taking up various management positions eventually bringing him to Lancaster City Council as the Commercial Protection Manager responsible for Food Safety, Health & Safety and Licensing in 2014.  

He has written a number of published articles relating to food fraud and crime for an Environmental Health Journal, as well as developing the nationally recognised Covid Safe assurance scheme for businesses and the recently Launched “Eat safe” and “Drink Safe” customer assurance scheme for Lancaster. Steve had a lead role jointly with the Head of Public Protection coordinating the Council’s public response to the Pandemic, and has recently taken up a temporary position sharing the post of Head of Public Protection at Lancaster.

Dr John Rowe, Acting Head of Operational Strategy Branch, Engagement & Policy Division, Health and Safety Executive

John is currently Acting Head of Operational Strategy in the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) with responsibility for policy and HSE’s operational direction in most industrial sectors. He has worked for HSE for over 20 years as an inspector, Principal Inspector and Head of Operations in Yorkshire & North East. John has undertaken or overseen numerous inspections, investigations and prosecutions but is now interested in how HSE can work in partnership with industry; particularly to reduce the burden of occupational ill health on GB. John worked on HSE’s policy and operational response to COVID-19 throughout the pandemic.

Professor Cath Noakes, University of Leeds

Professor Cath Noakes OBE is a chartered mechanical engineer, with a background in fluid dynamics. She leads research intoround headshot of Professor Cath Noakes ventilation, indoor air quality and infection control in the built environment. Her research focuses on experimental and modelling based studies, to explore the transport of airborne pathogens, the influence of indoor airflows, and the effectiveness of engineering approaches to controlling airborne disease transmission, including within healthcare settings. Cath is currently Deputy Director of Leeds Institute for Fluid Dynamics, and Co-Director of the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Fluid Dynamics. Since April 2020 she has been involved in the UK’s COVID-19 response, leading the Environment and Modelling sub-group of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), focusing on the science underpinning environmental transmission of COVID-19. Cath leads Theme 2 of the PROTECT study.

Sir Patrick Vallance, Chief Scientific Adviser, UK Government

Sir Patrick Vallance FRS FMedSci FRCP is Government Chief Scientific Adviser (GCSA), Head of the Government Science and Engineering (GSE) Profession and National Technology Adviser (NTA). His personal research was in the area of diseases of blood vessels and endothelial biology. Patrick was President, R&D at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) from 2012 until 2017. Prior to this, he was Senior Vice President, Medicines Discovery and Development. He joined the company in May 2006 as Head of Drug Discovery. He was a member of the GSK Board and the Corporate Executive Team. During his period as head of R&D over 14 new medicines were approved for use worldwide, for diseases ranging from cancer to asthma and HIV. Prior to joining GSK, he was a clinical academic, Professor of Medicine and led the Division of Medicine at UCL. He has over 20 years’ experience of basic and clinical research, and was a consultant physician in the NHS. His research spanned from work on medicinal chemistry and structural biology, through to cellular work, studies in humans and use of large electronic health record databases. He was elected to the Academy of Medical Sciences in 1999 and to the Royal Society in 2017. He was on the Board of the UK Office for Strategic Co-ordination of Health Research (OSCHR) from 2009 to 2016. He is an Honorary Fellow at UCL and holds honorary degrees from Imperial College London, Glasgow University, University of York and St George’s, University of London. He was a non-executive director and board member for UK Biobank and a non-executive board member for Genome Research Limited but stepped down in taking up the GCSA role.

Lara Edwards, Senior Programme Manager, Health Data Research UK

As Senior Programme Manager for National Core Study Data and Connectivity, Lara’s role is to ensure the successful development and  delivery of the Data and Connectivity work programme, by working closely with study leads at HDR UK and ONS, co-ordinating study activities and managing progress across a complex programme of activities delivered in partnership with key national organisations. The NCS Data and Connectivity programme aims to address the current fragmentation of the UK data infrastructure by working in partnership with stakeholders from across the four nations to organise medical, biological and social science data on an unprecedented scale and complexity. Lara joined HDR UK from NIHR Applied Research Collaboration West, where she was responsible for efficient overall management of the ARC programme, working with a diverse group of regional and national stakeholders.  Previously, she has held various senior programme and trial management roles across the NIHR clinical research infrastructure, and before this held roles in laboratory science  (microbiology) and management.

Dr Steven Kerr, Senior Research Fellow, University of Edinburgh

Dr Steven Kerr is a senior research fellow in the Centre for Medical Informatics at the Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh.  Initially he worked on theoretical particle physics (lattice QCD), but then switched to quantum gravity (topological quantum field theory and state sum models), before working in the private sector as a data scientist, which he continues today.  Currently, he is involved in research on the epidemiology of COVID-19 through EAVE II, which is a data platform consisting of clinical and demographic information for the entire population of Scotland, which has published a number of important research articles on COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness and safety. on COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness and safety.

Dr Tristan Pett,Covid-19 Infection Survey, Analytical Development Lead, ONS

Tristan Pett is a Principal Statistician in the UK Government Statistician Group. He has worked for the past two years developing analysisHeadshot of Dr Tristan Pett on the Office for National Statistics’ Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Survey, most recently leading bespoke analysis to inform policy responses to the pandemic. Tristan has a background in environmental science academia and the third sector, his research applying interdisciplinary approaches to understand the value of nature for human health and well-being.

Dr Katie Cunliffe, Covid-19 Infection Survey, Senior Research Officer, ONS

Katie Cunliffe is a Senior Researcher for the UK Government Social Research Profession, currently working on the Office for NationalHeadshot of Dr Katie Cunliffe Statistics’ gold standard Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Survey delivering bespoke analyses to inform the UK Government’s response to the pandemic and the general public. With a professional background in third sector leadership and education sector strategy and governance, her personal research explored professionalism using mixed methodologies through the lens of psychometric theory.

Dr Chloe Park, Senior Communications Manager, University College London

Dr Ellen Thompson, Postdoctoral Research Associate, King’s College London

Dr Ellen Thompson is a Postdoctoral Research Associate working across The Department of Twins Research & Genetic Epidemiology (DTR) and The Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry (SGDP) Centre. Her current research focusses on investigating the relationship between mental and physical health and their shared risk factors and outcomes using data from TwinsUK and the Twins Early Development Study (TEDS). She has expertise in working with large longitudinal datasets, particularly birth cohort studies, to explore environmental risk and protective factors associated with mental health across the life course.

Dr Milla Kibble, Research Facilitator, University of Cambridge

Milla Kibble (nee Anttila) received her PhD in high dimensional convex geometry and probability theory (Pure Mathematics) from UCL inHeadshot of Dr Milla Kibble 2000. She subsequently worked at Numbercraft Ltd. in Oxford, developing and employing analytics techniques to gain actionable information from large datasets. From 2002 to 2014, Milla combined undergraduate and postgraduate teaching of mathematics and statistics with research into probability and graph theory applications to biological data first in the Biomathematics Group at the University of Turku and then in the Stochastics Group at Aalto University in Finland.

 In 2014, Milla joined the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) as a senior researcher, working first in the Computational Systems Medicine Group, where her research focused on network pharmacology approaches to provide systems-level insights into the mechanisms of action of natural products; and as of 2017 in the Epigenetics of Complex Diseases and Traits Group, using multiple data types from monozygotic twins to gain insights into the role of epigenetic effects in obesity.

 In 2018, Milla joined the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP) at the University of Cambridge as the new Research Facilitator, where her role broadly speaking is to support and develop the research strategy at DAMTP. In August 2021, Milla was awarded an MRC Fellowship to be seconded to the Longitudinal Health and Wellbeing NCS for COVID-19 for one year. She is working with Professor Nic Timpson at the University of Bristol and Dr Claire Steves at KCL to investigate the biological and societal factors behind differential response to COVID-19 vaccination and infection.

Day 2

Mr Allan Bennett, UK Health Security Agency

Dr Simon Parker, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory

Professor Martie Van Tongeren, University of Manchester

Martie van Tongeren, Professor of occupational and environmental health at the University of Manchester, has nearly 30 years ofCircular headshot of Prof Martie van Tongeren experience in research in occupational and environmental exposure assessment and epidemiology, including more than 10 years at the Institute of Occupational Medicine (IOM) in Edinburgh most recently as Head of Exposure Assessment/Director of Research Development.  His main research projects include development and application of tools to estimate current and past exposure to various chemical and other agents in the work environment and the home for chemical risk assessment and epidemiological studies.

Headshot of Dr Yiqun ChenDr Yiqun Chen, HSE

Dr Jennifer Anderson, Head of Training and Careers, UKRI, Medical Research Council

Dr Jennifer Anderson is Head of Training and Careers (MRC). Her role involves overseeing MRC’s strategy for, and investment in,Headshot of Dr Jennifer Anderson studentships and personal fellowships to ensure we train, attract and retain the skilled individuals that make the UK a leader in biomedical research. Prior to joining MRC in 2015, she completed a PhD in cancer cell biology and spent 8 years as a postdoc researching radiation biology.

Dr Beth Routley, Senior Researcher, Secure Research Service,ONS

 

Lightning Talks

Session A - Modelling/Transmission

Chair: David Fishwick

David is a Consultant Respiratory Physician in the NHS in Sheffield and the Chief Medical Adviser to the Health and Safety Executive. He holds honorary Professorships in Respiratory Medicine at the Universities of Sheffield and Manchester. He is a Co-Director of the Centre for Workplace Health and a member of the UK Independent Scientific Advisory Committee. David is the outgoing Chair of the European Respiratory Society Occupational and Environmental Group. He works actively within the PROTECT study, particularly within Theme 3. He also sat on the HSE-based Decision Making Group for PPE clearance during the COVID-19 pandemic, and actively contributes to much of the work of the Thomas Ashton Institute for Risk and Regulatory Research with The University of Manchester.

Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in real world setting and experimental models
Jie Zhou (Jay)
Access a PDF: Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in real world setting and experimental models

Asymptomatic/mild SARS-CoV-2 Skin-Skin & Bio-aerosols Transmission
Amanda Seekings
Access a PDF: Asymptomatic/mild SARS-CoV-2 Skin-Skin & Bio-aerosols Transmission

Modelling SARS-CoV-2 transmission risk on a construction site
Clara Cheung, Thomas Ashton Institute for Risk and Regulatory Research, University of Manchester

Talk 1: Simplified Within Host and Dose-response Models of SARS-CoV-2 Infection
Jingsi Xu

Talk 2: Using in-host models to advise on social care asymptomatic testing strategies
Ian Hall, University of Manchester
Access a PDF: Using in-host models to advise on social care asymptomatic testing strategies

AI-assisted observation of micro-activities to estimate microbial exposure
Tom Komar, Urban Observatory at Newcastle University
Access a PDF:AI-assisted observation of micro-activities to estimate microbial exposure

Tom’s role at Urban Observatory is to develop applications for analysis of sensor data and imagery. Software he builds forms numerousHeadshot of Dr Tom Komar micro-services in the UO stack, and forms parts of the data capture, analysis and presentation systems. Machine Learning methods developed at the Urban Observatory extract quantitative data from imagery, cluster information for efficient time-series management, and highlight suspicious sensor readings. They are used to enrich captured observations, enhance archiving and retrieval of information, and improve data quality for use in research.

Before joining the Urban Observatory he worked in transport modelling and urban planning, where he created travel demand models and urban development simulations.

Changes In Ventilation of Schools when monitoring CO2 (CIVOS)
Natalie Williams
Access a PDF: Changes In Ventilation of Schools when monitoring CO2 (CIVOS)

Dr Williams is a Behavioural Scientist with the Behavioural Science and Insights Unit (BSIU). The BSIU coordinate behavioural and social science advice, guidance, evaluation and research within the UK Health Security Agency.

Session B - COVID-19 Prevalence and More

Chair: Martie Van Tongeren

Martie van Tongeren is Professor of Occupational & Environmental Health the University of Manchester. He has nearly 30 years ofCircular headshot of Prof Martie van Tongeren experience in research in occupational and environmental exposure assessment and epidemiology, including more than 10 years at the Institute of Occupational Medicine (IOM) in Edinburgh most recently as Head of Exposure Assessment/Director of Research Development.  His main research projects include development and application of tools to estimate current and past exposure to various chemical and other agents in the work environment and the home for chemical risk assessment and epidemiological studies.

Re-imagining construction project delivery in a post-pandemic economy
Richard Kirkham, Thomas Ashton Institute for Risk and Regulatory Research, University of Manchester
Access a PDF: Re-imagining construction project delivery in a post-pandemic economy copy of the presentation

Areas of enduring COVID-19 prevalenceHeadshot of Dr Cath Lewis
Cath Lewis, University of Manchester
Access a PDF: Areas of enduring COVID-19 prevalence

Cath is one of the lead researchers on a PROTECT project looking at enduring prevalence of COVID-19, and contributes to several other projects within PROTECT, including a systematic review of risk factors for workplace transmission. She has a background in nursing and has previously worked on a wide range of research projects including a qualitative evaluation of health care provision within secure settings, a review of the health impacts of COVID-19 and a qualitative evaluation of a regional contact tracing system.

Understanding community level influences on COVID-19 prevalence in England
Chaitanya Joshi
Access a PDF: Understanding community level influences on COVID-19 prevalence in England

Identifying targets for interventions to increase the wearing of face coverings
Chris Armitage, University of Manchester

Using WGS-enriched contact tracing data at national scale to understand SARS-CoV-2 transmission
Charlie Turner, Contact Tracing Data Team, UK Health Security Agency
Access a PDF: Using WGS-enriched contact tracing data at national scale to understand SARS-CoV-2 transmission

Spatial clustering of COVID-19 contact tracing data
Rachel Abbey
Access a PDF: Methodology for the Spatial Clustering of CTAS data to identify high risk workplace settings

Keeping the UK Building Safely (KUBS)
Sheena Johnson, Thomas Ashton Institute for Risk and Regulatory Research, University of Manchester
Access a PDF: Keeping the UK Building Safely (KUBS)

Sheena Johnson is an Occupational and Chartered Psychologist registered with the Health and Care Professions Council, and Professor of Work Psychology and Wellbeing at Alliance Manchester Business School. She is an active researcher into the topics of stress and health and the ageing workforce. Sheena is the author of numerous journal articles and book chapters, regularly presents her work at national and international conferences and sits on the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Stress Management, an American Psychological Association journal, and the official journal of the International Stress Management Association.

Sheena is the University of Manchester lead on Social Change and Inequalities at the Thomas Ashton Institute for Risk and Regulatory Research, and sits on the management board of MICRA (Manchester Institute for Collaborative Research on Ageing). She is also a member of both Alliance Manchester Business School’s Work and Equalities Research Institute where she is academic lead for theme 2 ‘Fair Treatment at Work’, and the Division of Occupational Psychology’s Health and Well-Being Working Group.

Mitigating transmission in a shared meeting room scenario
Daniel Miller
Access a PDF: Mitigating transmission in a shared meeting room scenario

Session C - Experimental/ Measurements

Chair: Allan Bennett

Flow in and around face masks
Caroline Marshall
Access a PDF: Flow in and around face masks

Imaging aerosol deposition and filtration with advanced x-ray microscopies
David Eastwood, University of Manchester at Harwell
Access a PDF: Imaging aerosol deposition and filtration with advanced x-ray microscopies

David’s work deals with resilience – improving the scientific knowledge base underpinning decisions about potential hazards and how we respond to them. He is particularly interested in reactive materials such as batteries and catalysts, and airborne materials such as aerosols and particulate matter. David is based at the Diamond Light Source in Oxfordshire as part of the University of Manchester at Harwell‘s Collaboration with Diamond, where he develops X-ray imaging and in situ synchrotron techniques, and is a member of the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil EngineeringUniversity of Manchester,

Talk 1: Bacterial signals captured from aerosols vary between different breathing activities, different sampling matrices and different microbial identities inform development of face mask sampling
Mohamad Abdulwhhab
Access a PDF: Bacterial signals captured from aerosols vary between different breathing activities, different sampling matrices and different microbial identities inform development of face mask sampling

Talk 2: The utilisation of facemask sampling for the detection of SARS-CoV-2
Jonathan Decker

Evaluation of SARS-CoV-2 environmental surface sampling protocols
Antony Spencer
Access a PDF: Evaluation of SARS-CoV-2 environmental surface sampling protocols

Validation of viability qPCR
Ian Nicholls

Investigation of Aerosol Stability of SARS-CoV-2 Alpha, Beta and Delta Variants of Concern at Low, Medium and High Relative Humidity (RH)
Okechukwu Onianwa
Access a PDF: Investigation of Aerosol Stability of SARS-CoV-2 Alpha, Beta and Delta Variants of Concern at Low, Medium and High Relative Humidity (RH)

Lockup layer in displacement ventilation: exhaust mechanism
Rajesh Kumar Bhagat
A copy of the talk is not available at this time

Poster Presentations

All researchers were invited to submit poster presentations which were displayed throughout the Symposium, and delegates were invited to vote for the most outstanding poster of the Symposium.

The winner was: ‘Technical and behavioural barriers to good ventilation in hospitality venues’ by Abigail Hathway, Zhangjie Peng, Sophie Pott, Vinh Vu, Alisha Suhag, Edward Murphy and Chantelle Wood from the University of Sheffield.

2nd place was  “Use of respiratory tract bacteria to assess aerosol and droplet dispersal: impact of respiratory activity” by Patricia Barkoci, Ginny Moore and Allan Bennett from the UK Heath Security Agency. 

3rd place went to Ian Nicholls for the poster “COVID-OUT surface sampling work”

Congratulations to everyone who took part!

Posters

Addressing COVID-19 Workplace Transmission
James Lewis, Bryony Cook, Rachel Abbey, Matt Ricketts

Agility and vulnerability: the UK logistics sector in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic
Hua Wei, Sarah Daniels, Carl A. Whitfield, Yang Han, David W. Denning, Ian Hall, Martyn Regan, Arpana Verma and Martie van Tongeren
Access a PDF of the poster: Agility and vulnerability: the UK logistics sector in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic 

Bacterial signals captured from aerosols vary between different sampling matrices and different identities inform development of face mask sampling
Mohamad Abdulwhhab, Baber Saleem, Natalie Garton & Mike Barer
Access a PDF image of the poster: Bacterial signals captured from aerosols vary between different sampling matrices and different identities inform development of face mask sampling

CFD and ventilation modelling for COVID-19
P. Salinas, S. Dargaville, A. Joshi, L. Mottet, C.C. Pain
Access a PDF image of the poster: CFD and ventilation modelling for COVID-19

Changes In Ventilation Of Schools when monitoring CO2 – CIVOS
Stavros Bontitsopoulos, Christopher Brown, Henry Burridge, Holly Carter, Catherine Noakes, Katherine Roberts, Carolanne Vouriot, Dale
Weston, Mark Mon-Williams and Natalie Williams
Access a PDF image of the poster: Changes In Ventilation Of Schools when monitoring CO2 – CIVOS

COVID-19 Food for thought: A ‘deep dive’ into transmission risk and mitigation practices with food sector experts
Rebecca Canham, Alice Smith, Paniz Hosseini, Miranda Loh, Tony Fletcher
Access a PDF image of the poster: COVID-19 Food for thought: A ‘deep dive’ into transmission risk and mitigation practices with food sector experts

COVID-OUT surface sampling work
Ian Nicholls

Face coverings: attitudes and practices within close contact retail services
R. Canham, A. Smith, K. Clabon, H. Cowie K. Galea, K. Dixon
Access a PDF image of the poster: Face coverings: attitudes and practices within close contact retail services

Flow In and Around Rapid Manufacture Face Masks
C Marshall, P Culmer, D M Hodgson, N Kapur, G Keevil, J B McQuaid, C Noakes
Access a PDF image of the poster: Flow In and Around Rapid Manufacture Face Masks

Omicron breakthrough infections in previously infected or vaccinated hamsters
Jie Zhou, Ksenia Sukhova, Thomas P. Peacock, Jonathan C. Brown, Paul F. McKay, Maya Moshe, Ruthiran Kugasathan, Robin J. Shattock, Katie Doores, Wendy S. Barclay
Access a PDF image of the poster: Omicron breakthrough infections in previously infected or vaccinated hamsters

Perceptions of COVID-19 risk on public transport: Reporting on a phased Deep Dive
Nicola Gartland, Anna Coleman, David Fishwick, Sheena Johnson, Martie van Tongeren
Access a PDF image of the poster: Perceptions of COVID-19 risk on public transport: Reporting on a phased Deep Dive

Reimagining construction project delivery in a post-pandemic economy
Richard Kirkham, William Collinge and Amanda Howells 
Access a PDF image of the poster: Reimagining construction project delivery in a post-pandemic economy

Technical and Behavioural Barriers to Good Ventilation in Hospitality Venues
Abigail Hathway, Zhangjie Peng, Sophie Pott, Vinh Vu, Alisha Suhag, Edward Murphy and Chantelle Wood
Access a PDF of the poster: Technical and Behavioural Barriers to Good Ventilation in Hospitality Venues 

The Dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 Infectivity with Changes in Aerosol Microenvironment
Allen Haddrell

Transmission Risk Modelling for a Multi-Space Office Environment
H Gallagher, D Miller, ST Parker
Access a PDF image of the poster: Transmission Risk Modelling for a Multi-Space Office Environment

Use of respiratory tract bacteria to assess aerosol and droplet dispersal: impact of respiratory activity
Patricia Barkoci, Ginny Moore and Allan Bennett 
Access a PDF image of the poster: Use of respiratory tract bacteria to assess aerosol and droplet dispersal: impact of respiratory activity

Ventilation effects in workplaces
Cristina Rodriguez Rivero, Stuart B. Dalziel
Access a PDF: Ventilation effects in workplaces