Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki: “Understanding the circulation of highly pathogenic zoonotic viruses to better protect populations”.
Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki: “Understanding the circulation of highly pathogenic zoonotic viruses to better protect populations”.
On December 19, 2024, Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki, a medical doctor and young researcher, successfully defended his thesis at the Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD) in Montpellier, in the presence of partners from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Togo. His work, focusing in particular on the sequencing of the mpox virus in the DRC, is part of the AFROSCREEN program, which aims strengthen surveillance and understanding of the transmission dynamics of highly pathogenic viruses. He talks about his career, his research projects and his ambitions for the future.
Can you introduce yourself?
Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki: I’m a research physician at the Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB), senior assistant in microbiology at the University of Kinshasa in the DRC, and I recently completed a PhD in Science with the University of Montpellier in France, defended on December 19, 2024. For the last 3 years, I have carried out my research work both at the IRD Montpellier TransVIHMI unit and at INRB in Kinshasa. And for the next two years I’ll be doing a post-doctorate at IRD, continuing to carry out research between France and the DRC.
What was the subject and objective of your thesis?
Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki: My thesis, entitled “Apport de la sérologie et de la génomique dans la compréhension de la circulation des Virus zoonotiques hautement pathogènes à l’interface Homme Faune sauvage en République Démocratique du Congo : Cas des virus Ebola et Monkeypox” (Contribution of serology and genomics to understanding the circulation of highly pathogenic zoonotic viruses at the human-wildlife interface in the Democratic Republic of Congo: the case of Ebola and Monkeypox viruses), focused on the use of multiplex serology and next-generation sequencing to better understand the circulation of highly pathogenic viruses, particularly those that have been transmitted to humans by animals for several years in the DRC. In particular, we studied the Ebola and mpox viruses. The main objective was to use these different tools, in a complementary way, to gain a better understanding of the transmission dynamics of these two emerging and re-emerging viruses of zoonotic origin.
How does your work fit in with the objectives of the AFROSCREEN program?
Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki: AFROSCREEN is a major program led by ANRS Emerging Infectious Diseases, in consortium with Institut Pasteur and Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD), working in collaboration with some 20 laboratories and institutes located in 13 countries in West and Central Africa, including INRB in Kinshasa, DRC, where I carried out my research. The project was launched in July 2021 to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic by strengthening case detection and identification using sequencing to track the evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. With the decline in COVID-19 cases, the AFROSCREEN project broadened its priorities to include other highly pathogenic viruses circulating in countries where network members were present. In the DRC, for example, INRB prioritized the sequencing of the mpox virus by the end of 2022, for which more and more cases were being reported in the country’s various regions.
My research was perfectly aligned with the objectives of the AFROSCREEN program, as it aimed to improve the identification of emerging mpox variants in the DRC and better monitor their evolution, thus meeting the project’s ambitions in terms of strengthening genomic surveillance capacities.
Can you tell us about one of the key results of your thesis and what you’re proud of?
Eddy Kinganda – Lusamaki: My thesis incorporates a number of studies, the results of which have led us to understand that the Ebola and mpox viruses circulate more than they are detected in the DRC. With regard to the mpox virus, my work has led to better real-time monitoring and characterization, thanks to sequencing, of the mpox strain circulating in the DRC, i.e. clade I. The result was a paradigm shift in the transmission of the mpox clade I epidemic, which became dual with the documentation of cases of sexual transmission for the first time in 2023, in addition to the zoonotic transmissions already described in the DRC and other Central African countries. New mpox variants circulating in the human population of the DRC were discovered by the INRB team, including the one circulating in the east of the country, named clade Ib. Sequencing has made it easier to track its spread, and to detect it in other non-endemic countries, and even outside Africa. All these new data have helped to enlighten the scientific community and reinforce the consequent public health decisions, with the declaration of mpox as a public health emergency of continental security by the Africa CDC, and of international scope by the WHO, in August 2024. In addition, the sharing of mpox virus sequences on international public databases has set the world on a dynamic course to improve diagnostic tools adapted to the new mpox clade Ib variant, which has crossed borders. This global impact is my greatest source of pride.
What are your plans for the future?
Eddy Kinganda – Lusamaki: In the short term, I’m going to concentrate on my post-doctorate and bring the knowledge I acquired during my thesis, such as metagenomic or phylogenetic analyses, to my home institution in the DRC, INRB, to improve understanding and management of emerging zoonotic diseases in the DRC.
In the longer term, I’m planning to go into higher education and contribute to research projects, particularly in the field of health emergencies.
Find out more about Eddy Kinganda – Lusamaki’s work and AFROSCREEN’s role in monitoring the mpox virus in the DRC :
- Genomic surveillance in the DRC: recent studies on the mpox virus supported by AFROSCREEN
Link to AFROSCREEN article - Transmission of the mpox virus in the DRC: predominance of the zoonotic mode
Link to IRD article - Radio program: the mpox epidemic and the role of genomic surveillance
Link to the radio interview with the University of Montpellier
On December 19, 2024, Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki, a medical doctor and young researcher, successfully defended his thesis at the Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD) in Montpellier, in the presence of partners from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Togo. His work, focusing in particular on the sequencing of the mpox virus in the DRC, is part of the AFROSCREEN program, which aims strengthen surveillance and understanding of the transmission dynamics of highly pathogenic viruses. He talks about his career, his research projects and his ambitions for the future.
Can you introduce yourself?
Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki: I’m a research physician at the Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB), senior assistant in microbiology at the University of Kinshasa in the DRC, and I recently completed a PhD in Science with the University of Montpellier in France, defended on December 19, 2024. For the last 3 years, I have carried out my research work both at the IRD Montpellier TransVIHMI unit and at INRB in Kinshasa. And for the next two years I’ll be doing a post-doctorate at IRD, continuing to carry out research between France and the DRC.
What was the subject and objective of your thesis?
Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki: My thesis, entitled “Apport de la sérologie et de la génomique dans la compréhension de la circulation des Virus zoonotiques hautement pathogènes à l’interface Homme Faune sauvage en République Démocratique du Congo : Cas des virus Ebola et Monkeypox” (Contribution of serology and genomics to understanding the circulation of highly pathogenic zoonotic viruses at the human-wildlife interface in the Democratic Republic of Congo: the case of Ebola and Monkeypox viruses), focused on the use of multiplex serology and next-generation sequencing to better understand the circulation of highly pathogenic viruses, particularly those that have been transmitted to humans by animals for several years in the DRC. In particular, we studied the Ebola and mpox viruses. The main objective was to use these different tools, in a complementary way, to gain a better understanding of the transmission dynamics of these two emerging and re-emerging viruses of zoonotic origin.
How does your work fit in with the objectives of the AFROSCREEN program?
Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki: AFROSCREEN is a major program led by ANRS Emerging Infectious Diseases, in consortium with Institut Pasteur and Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD), working in collaboration with some 20 laboratories and institutes located in 13 countries in West and Central Africa, including INRB in Kinshasa, DRC, where I carried out my research. The project was launched in July 2021 to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic by strengthening case detection and identification using sequencing to track the evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. With the decline in COVID-19 cases, the AFROSCREEN project broadened its priorities to include other highly pathogenic viruses circulating in countries where network members were present. In the DRC, for example, INRB prioritized the sequencing of the mpox virus by the end of 2022, for which more and more cases were being reported in the country’s various regions.
My research was perfectly aligned with the objectives of the AFROSCREEN program, as it aimed to improve the identification of emerging mpox variants in the DRC and better monitor their evolution, thus meeting the project’s ambitions in terms of strengthening genomic surveillance capacities.
Can you tell us about one of the key results of your thesis and what you’re proud of?
Eddy Kinganda – Lusamaki: My thesis incorporates a number of studies, the results of which have led us to understand that the Ebola and mpox viruses circulate more than they are detected in the DRC. With regard to the mpox virus, my work has led to better real-time monitoring and characterization, thanks to sequencing, of the mpox strain circulating in the DRC, i.e. clade I. The result was a paradigm shift in the transmission of the mpox clade I epidemic, which became dual with the documentation of cases of sexual transmission for the first time in 2023, in addition to the zoonotic transmissions already described in the DRC and other Central African countries. New mpox variants circulating in the human population of the DRC were discovered by the INRB team, including the one circulating in the east of the country, named clade Ib. Sequencing has made it easier to track its spread, and to detect it in other non-endemic countries, and even outside Africa. All these new data have helped to enlighten the scientific community and reinforce the consequent public health decisions, with the declaration of mpox as a public health emergency of continental security by the Africa CDC, and of international scope by the WHO, in August 2024. In addition, the sharing of mpox virus sequences on international public databases has set the world on a dynamic course to improve diagnostic tools adapted to the new mpox clade Ib variant, which has crossed borders. This global impact is my greatest source of pride.
What are your plans for the future?
Eddy Kinganda – Lusamaki: In the short term, I’m going to concentrate on my post-doctorate and bring the knowledge I acquired during my thesis, such as metagenomic or phylogenetic analyses, to my home institution in the DRC, INRB, to improve understanding and management of emerging zoonotic diseases in the DRC.
In the longer term, I’m planning to go into higher education and contribute to research projects, particularly in the field of health emergencies.
Find out more about Eddy Kinganda – Lusamaki’s work and AFROSCREEN’s role in monitoring the mpox virus in the DRC :
- Genomic surveillance in the DRC: recent studies on the mpox virus supported by AFROSCREEN
Link to AFROSCREEN article - Transmission of the mpox virus in the DRC: predominance of the zoonotic mode
Link to IRD article - Radio program: the mpox epidemic and the role of genomic surveillance
Link to the radio interview with the University of Montpellier