(Email)

I am interested in the genetics and evolution of viral populations, particularly methods used to determine the molecular 'footprint' of selection. The goal of my DPhil is to explore the applicability of currently available methods to viral populations, and to develop new methods for use on genome-wide data (HIV and Influenza). I have also developed a computer program which implements these methods, which allows users to submit their data, choose from a variety of tests, and quickly calculate estimates and information about the presence/magnitude of selection. The program is available here.

I enjoy playing the saxophone, Jazz, magic realism literature, Brazilian jujitsu, power lifting, and Anuba.

2011

Vijaykrishna D, Smith GJD, Pybus OG, Zhu H, Bhatt S, Poon LLM, Riley S, Bahl J, Ma SK, Cheung CL, Perera RAP, Chen H, Shortridge KF, Webby RJ, Webster RG, Guan Y, Peiris JSM. Long-term evolution and transmission dynamics of swine influenza A virus. Nature 473:519-22

Bhatt S, Holmes EC, Pybus OG. The genomic rate of molecular adaptation of the human influenza A virus. Molecular Biology & Evolution In press

2010

Bhatt S, Katzourakis A, Pybus OG. Detecting natural selection in RNA virus populations using sequence summary statistics. Infection Genetics & Evolution 10:421-30

2009

Smith GJD, Vijaykrishna D, Bahl J, Lycett SJ, Worobey M, Pybus OG, Ma SK, Cheung CM, Raghwani J, Bhatt S, Peiris JS, Guan Y, Rambaut A. Origins and evolutionary genomics of the 2009 swine-origin H1N1 influenza A epidemic. Nature 459:1122-5