Professor Nicola Lewis

BSc BVetMed PhD MRCVS
Professor in One Health Evolutionary Biology

Department: Pathobiology and Population Sciences

Campus: Hawkshead

Research Groups: Pathogen Flow in Ecosystems, Host-Pathogen Interactions and Vaccinology, IRLFS (Research Programme)

Nicola Lewis is Professor in One Health Evolutionary Biology and Co-ordinator of the Livestock Production and Health research programme at the RVC. Nicola is also Deputy Director of the OIE/FAO International Reference Laboratory for avian influenza, swine influenza and Newcastle Disease at APHA-Weybridge.

Nicola Lewis is Professor in One Health Evolutionary Biology, an alumnus of the RVC and Co-ordinator of the Livestock Production and Health research programme. Her research focuses on investigating the ecology and evolution of influenza A viruses in multiple animal hosts and the risks that these viruses might pose to the human population, with a global context.  This internationally-collaborative high-impact research spans huge diversity from implementing surveillance in wild birds in the Republic of Georgia, analyzing emerging highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses, to using state-of-the-art computational techniques to analyse influenza virus antigenic and genetic evolution, to assess pandemic risk, and to inform international stakeholder on vaccine strains. Her recent research publications encompass avian, swine and human influenza viruses as well as Newcastle Disease. She is also Research coordinator for the Livestock Production and Health Management group at the RVC. Alongside her role at the RVC, Nicola is the Deputy Director of the OIE/FAO International Reference Laboratory for avian influenza, swine influenza and Newcastle Disease at APHA-Weybridge.

In her roles, she also provides consultancy to a range of stakeholders but specifically including the European Commission, OIE, FAO, EFSA, ECDC, WHO and PHE. She serves on the OIE expert group for the Control of Equine Influenza who meet annually to decide on global equine influenza vaccine strain selection. She is also an OFFLU (OIE/FAO) Executive committee member 2016-2019, and a member of the OFFLU swine influenza virus group who globally co-ordinate swine influenza virus surveillance and who aim to strengthen and coordinate influenza surveillance in pigs worldwide, providing up-to-date expert scientific advice to OIE, FAO and WHO. Additionally, she is a member of the OFFLU avian influenza network consisting of avian influenza experts who address priority influenza-related issues, the OFFLU wildlife group who assess emerging infectious disease in wild animals and she contributes data and analyses biennially to the OFFLU WHO Vaccine Composition Meeting submission for the human seasonal influenza vaccine.

Venkatesh, D; Poen, M J; Bestebroer, T M; Scheuer, R D; Vuong, O; Chkhaidze, M; Machablishvili, A; Mamuchadze, J; Ninua, L; Fedorova, N B; Halpin, R A; Lin, X; Ransier, A; Stockwell, T B; Wentworth, D E; Kriti, D; Dutta, J; Van Bakel, H; Puranik, A; Slomka, M J; Essen, S; Brown, I H; Fouchier, R A M; Lewis, N S.
Avian influenza viruses in wild birds: virus evolution in a multi-host ecosystem.
JOURNAL OF VIROLOGY, 92. 2018

Lee, E-K; Lee, Y-N; Kye, S-J; Lewis, N S; Brown, I H; Sagong, M; Heo, G-B; Kang, Y-M; Cho, H-K; Kang, H-m; Cheon, S-H; Lee, M; Park, B-K; Kim, Y-J; Lee, Y-J.
Characterization of a novel reassortant H5N6 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus clade 2.3.4.4 in Korea, 2017.
EMERGING MICROBES & INFECTIONS, 7;103, 2018

Souza, C K; Rajão, D S; Sandbulte, M R; Lopes, S; Lewis, N S; Loving, C L; Gauger, P C; Vincent, A L.
The type of adjuvant in whole inactivated influenza a virus vaccines impacts vaccine-associated enhanced respiratory disease.
VACCINE, 36;41:6103-6110, 2018

Bolton, M J; Abente, E J; Venkatesh, D; Stratton, J A; Zeller, M; Anderson, T K; Lewis, N S; Vincent, A L.
Antigenic evolution of H3N2 influenza A viruses in swine in the United States from 2012 to 2016.
Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses, 2018

Rajao, D S; Anderson, T K; Kitikoon, P; Stratton, J; Lewis, N S; Vincent, A L.
Antigenic and genetic evolution of contemporary swine H1 influenza viruses in the United States.
Virology, 51845-54. 2018

Herfst, S., Böhringer, M., Karo, B., Lawrence, P., Lewis, N. S., Mina, M. J., Russell, C. J., Steel, J., Swart, R. L. d. and Menge, C. (2017) 'Drivers of airborne human-to-human pathogen transmission', Current Opinion in Virology, 22, pp. 22-29.

Vincent AL, Perez DR, Rajao D, Anderson TK, Abente EJ, Walia RR, Lewis NS.
Influenza A virus vaccines for swine.
Vet Microbiol. 2017 Jul;206:35-44. doi: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2016.11.026. Epub 2016 Nov 24.

Poen, M. J., J. H. Verhagen, F. A. Majoor, N. S. Lewis, T. Kuiken, M. C. M. De Jong and R. A. M. Fouchier (2017). "A43 Modeling the ecology and evolution of H13 and H16 avian influenza A subtypes in black-headed gulls to understand influenza disease dynamics." Virus Evol 3(Suppl 1).

Lewis, N S; Russell, C A; Langat, P; Anderson, T K; Berger, K; Bielejec, F; Burke, D F; Dudas, G; Fonville, J M; Fouchier, R A; Kellam, P; Koel, B F; Lemey, P; Nguyen, T; Nuansrichy, B; Peiris, J M; Saito, T; Simon, G; Skepner, E; Takemae, N; ESNIP3 Consortium; Webby R J; Van Reeth K; Brookes S M; Larsen L; Watson S J; Brown I H; Vincent A L.
The global antigenic diversity of swine influenza A viruses.
eLife, 5e12217. 2016

Abente, E. J., J. Santos, N. S. Lewis, P. C. Gauger, J. Stratton, E. Skepner, T. K. Anderson, D. S. Rajao, D. R. Perez and A. L. Vincent (2016). "The Molecular Determinants of Antibody Recognition and Antigenic Drift in the H3 Hemagglutinin of Swine Influenza A Virus." J Virol 90(18): 8266-8280.


Lewis, N. S., C. A. Russell, P. Langat, T. K. Anderson, K. Berger, F. Bielejec, D. F. Burke, G. Dudas, J. M. Fonville, R. A. Fouchier, P. Kellam, B. F. Koel, P. Lemey, T. Nguyen, B. Nuansrichy, J. M. Peiris, T. Saito, G. Simon, E. Skepner, N. Takemae, E. consortium, R. J. Webby, K. Van Reeth, S. M. Brookes, L. Larsen, S. J. Watson, I. H. Brown and A. L. Vincent (2016). "The global antigenic diversity of swine influenza A viruses." Elife 5: e12217.

Vincent, A. L., N. Lewis and R. Webby (2016). Global evolution of influenza A viruses in swine. Animal Influenza, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.: 459-479.

Anderson TK, Macken CA, Lewis NS, Scheuermann RH, Van Reeth K, Brown IH, Swenson SL, Simon G, Saito T, Berhane Y, Ciacci-Zanella J, Pereda A, Davis CT, Donis RO, Webby RJ, Vincent AL.
A Phylogeny-Based Global Nomenclature System and Automated Annotation Tool for H1 Hemagglutinin Genes from Swine Influenza A Viruses.mSphere. 2016 Dec 14;1(6). pii: e00275-16. eCollection 2016 Nov-Dec.

Lewis, N S; Verhagen, J H; Javakhishvili, Z; Russell, C A; Lexmond, P; Westgeest, K B; Bestebroer, TM; Halpin, RA; Lin, X; Ransier, A; Fedorova, NB; Stockwell, TB; Latorre-Margalef, N; Olsen, B; Smith, G; Bahl, J; Wentworth, D E; Waldenström, J; Fouchier, R A; De Graaf, M.
Influenza A virus evolution and spatio-temporal dynamics in Eurasian wild birds: a phylogenetic and phylogeographical study of whole-genome sequence data.
JOURNAL OF GENERAL VIROLOGY, 96;8:2050-60.  2015

Rajão, D S; Gauger, P C; Anderson, T K; Lewis, N S; Abente, E J; Killian, M L; Perez, D R; Sutton, T C; Zhang, J; Vincent, A L.
Novel Reassortant Human-Like H3N2 and H3N1 Influenza A Viruses Detected in Pigs Are Virulent and Antigenically Distinct from Swine Viruses Endemic to the United States.
JOURNAL OF VIROLOGY, 89;22:11213-22.  2015

Lewis, N S; Anderson, T K; Kitikoon, P; Skepner, E; Burke, D F; Vincent, A L.
Substitutions near the hemagglutinin receptor-binding site determine the antigenic evolution of influenza A H3N2 viruses in U.S. swine.
JOURNAL OF VIROLOGY, 88;9:4752-63.  2014

Woodward, A. L., Rash, A. S., Blinman, D., Bowman, S., Chambers, T. M., Daly, J. M., Damiani, A., Joseph, S., Lewis, N., McCauley, J. W., Medcalf, L., Mumford, J., Newton, J. R., Tiwari, A., Bryant, N. A. and Elton, D. M. (2014) 'Development of a surveillance scheme for equine influenza in the UK and characterisation of viruses isolated in Europe, Dubai and the USA from 2010-2012', Vet Microbiol, 169(3-4), pp. 113-27.

Gilbert, M., B. F. Koel, T. M. Bestebroer, N. S. Lewis, D. J. Smith and R. A. Fouchier (2014). "Serological evidence for non-lethal exposures of Mongolian wild birds to highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 virus." PLoS One 9(12): e113569.

Henningson, J. N., D. S. Rajao, P. Kitikoon, A. Lorusso, M. R. Culhane, N. S. Lewis, T. K. Anderson and A. L. Vincent (2014). "Comparative virulence of wild-type H1N1pdm09 influenza A isolates in swine." Veterinary Microbiology(0).

Lewis, N. S., T. K. Anderson, P. Kitikoon, E. Skepner, D. F. Burke and A. L. Vincent (2014). "Substitutions near the hemagglutinin receptor-binding site determine the antigenic evolution of influenza A H3N2 viruses in U.S. swine." J Virol.


Russell, C. A., P. M. Kasson, R. O. Donis, S. Riley, J. Dunbar, A. Rambaut, J. Asher, S. Burke, C. T. Davis, R. J. Garten, S. Gnanakaran, S. I. Hay, S. Herfst, N. S. Lewis, J. O. Lloyd-Smith, C. A. Macken, S. Maurer-Stroh, E. Neuhaus, C. R. Parrish, K. M. Pepin, S. S. Shepard, D. L. Smith, D. L. Suarez, S. C. Trock, M. A. Widdowson, D. B. George, M. Lipsitch and J. D. Bloom (2014). "Improving pandemic influenza risk assessment." Elife 3: e03883.


Vincent, A., L. Awada, I. Brown, H. Chen, F. Claes, G. Dauphin, R. Donis, M. Culhane, K. Hamilton, N. Lewis, E. Mumford, T. Nguyen, S. Parchariyanon, J. Pasick, G. Pavade, A. Pereda, M. Peiris, T. Saito, S. Swenson, K. Van Reeth, R. Webby, F. Wong and J. Ciacci-Zanella (2014). "Review of influenza A virus in swine worldwide: a call for increased surveillance and research." Zoonoses Public Health 61(1): 4-17.

Fonville, J. M., D. F. Burke, N. S. Lewis, L. C. Katzelnick and C. A. Russell (2013). "Quantifying the fitness advantage of polymerase substitutions in Influenza A/H7N9 viruses during adaptation to humans." PLoS One 8(9): e76047.


Koel, B. F., D. F. Burke, T. M. Bestebroer, S. van der Vliet, G. C. Zondag, G. Vervaet, E. Skepner, N. S. Lewis, M. I. Spronken, C. A. Russell, M. Y. Eropkin, A. C. Hurt, I. G. Barr, J. C. de Jong, G. F. Rimmelzwaan, A. D. Osterhaus, R. A. Fouchier and D. J. Smith (2013). "Substitutions near the receptor binding site determine major antigenic change during influenza virus evolution." Science 342(6161): 976-979.


Lewis, N. S., Z. Javakhishvili, C. A. Russell, A. Machablishvili, P. Lexmond, J. H. Verhagen, O. Vuong, T. Onashvili, M. Donduashvili, D. J. Smith and R. A. Fouchier (2013). "Avian influenza virus surveillance in wild birds in Georgia: 2009-2011." PLoS One 8(3): e58534.

Lewis, N. S., J. M. Daly, C. A. Russell, D. L. Horton, E. Skepner, N. A. Bryant, D. F. Burke, A. S. Rash, J. L. Wood, T. M. Chambers, R. A. Fouchier, J. A. Mumford, D. M. Elton and D. J. Smith (2011). "Antigenic and genetic evolution of equine influenza A (H3N8) virus from 1968 to 2007." J Virol 85(23): 12742-12749.


Lorusso, A., A. L. Vincent, M. L. Harland, D. Alt, D. O. Bayles, S. L. Swenson, M. R. Gramer, C. A. Russell, D. J. Smith, K. M. Lager and N. S. Lewis (2011). "Genetic and antigenic characterization of H1 influenza viruses from United States swine from 2008." J Gen Virol 92(Pt 4): 919-930.


Nfon, C. K., Y. Berhane, T. Hisanaga, S. Zhang, K. Handel, H. Kehler, O. Labrecque, N. S. Lewis, A. L. Vincent, J. Copps, S. Alexandersen and J. Pasick (2011). "Characterization of H1N1 swine influenza viruses circulating in Canadian pigs in 2009." J Virol 85(17): 8667-8679.

Bryant, N. A., R. Paillot, A. S. Rash, E. Medcalf, F. Montesso, J. Ross, J. Watson, M. Jeggo, N. S. Lewis, J. R. Newton and D. M. Elton (2010). "Comparison of two modern vaccines and previous influenza infection against challenge with an equine influenza virus from the Australian 2007 outbreak." Vet Res 41(2): 19.

Bryant, N. A., A. S. Rash, C. A. Russell, J. Ross, A. Cooke, S. Bowman, S. MacRae, N. S. Lewis, R. Paillot, R. Zanoni, H. Meier, L. A. Griffiths, J. M. Daly, A. Tiwari, T. M. Chambers, J. R. Newton and D. M. Elton (2009). "Antigenic and genetic variations in European and North American equine influenza virus strains (H3N8) isolated from 2006 to 2007." Vet Microbiol 138(1-2): 41-52.


Park, A. W., J. M. Daly, N. S. Lewis, D. J. Smith, J. L. Wood and B. T. Grenfell (2009).
"Quantifying the impact of immune escape on transmission dynamics of influenza." Science 326(5953): 726-728.

Bryant, N., A. Rash, N. Lewis, D. Elton, F. Montesso, J. Ross, R. Newton, R. Paillot, J. Watson and M. Jeggo (2008). "Australian equine influenza: vaccine protection in the UK." Vet Rec 162(15): 491-492.
 


 

 

  • UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) One Health Poultry Hub

    With integrated streams of social, economic, biological, mathematical and policy-led research, we are co-producing detailed knowledge on the biological, structural and socio-economic factors that shape networks of chicken production and distribution. The RVC-led UKRI GCRF One Health Poultry Hub brings together leading laboratory, clinical, veterinary and social scientists, as well as skilled communications experts, programme support staff and external stakeholders.  

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