Prof Christophe Fraser

Senior Group Leader in Pathogen Dynamics at the Big Data Institute, Professor in the Nuffield Department of Medicine at the University of Oxford, and Associate Faculty at the Sanger Institute

The Fraser group is interested in studying the population dynamics and epidemiology of pathogens, and translating this knowledge to public health. The primary tools used in the group are mathematical modelling and pathogen genomics. Their current topics of interest include: HIV virulence, genomics and treatment, pneumococcal genomics, antibiotic resistance and outbreak responses.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, since January 2020, the Fraser group has been working on the development of a variety of contact tracing innovations and have been members of the COVID-19 Genomics UK (COG-UK) consortium.

Collaborative projects

BEEHIVE (Bridging the Epidemiology and Evolution of HIV in Europe) is a cross-European study of HIV genomics and virulence amongst seroconverters that aims to assemble 4500 viral sequences from HIV patients across Europe and use this data to discover and characterise viral mutations or combinations of mutations that influence the severity of disease.

HPTN071 PopART (Population Effects of Antiretroviral Therapy to reduce HIV Transmission) is a cluster-randomized trial of HIV prevention (the largest HIV trial conducted to date), including universal test and treat in a population of 1.2 million people at high risk in 21 communities in Zambia and South Africa. PANGEA (Phylogenetics and Networks for Generalised HIV Epidemics in Africa) is a consortium using modern molecular epidemiology and phylodynamics to map HIV-1 genom- ic diversity and link to prevention modelling across sub-Saharan Africa. The first phase of the project centred on samplecollection and sequencing, the second phase focusses on data analysis and providing datasets for policy evaluation.

AMPHEUS (Analytics and Microbiology for Precision Health and Epidemiology – A Unified Solution) aims to deliver a single integrated platform for clinical microbiology, real-time epidemiology and intervention research to fight infectious pathogens in low income settings.

Personal Bio

Christophe trained in theoretical particle physics at the University of Edinburgh and the University of Swansea, where he received a doctorate in 1997. After his PhD, Christophe converted to mathematical biology, becoming a Lecturer, Reader, Royal Society University Research Fellow and then Chair of Theoretical Epidemiology in the Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology at Imperial College. In 2016, Christophe moved to the University of Oxford to become a Senior Group Leader in Pathogen Dynamics at the Big Data Institute, and Professor in the Nuffield Department of Medicine.