SPH Professor Contributes to GAO Report on Pandemic Origins

By Office of the President | Mar 20, 2023

Sergios-Orestis Kolokotronis, Ph.D., SPH Assistant Professor of Epidemiology & Infectious Diseases, was invited as an expert by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to contribute to a report investigating how the nation might prevent future pandemics.

Dr. Kolokotronis helped formulate questions around forensic genomics, evolutionary algorithms, genetic engineering, disease ecology, pathogen emergence, and epidemiology.

The GAO publicly released its formal report, Pandemic Origins – Technologies and Challenges for Biological Investigations, on February 1. The document identifies challenges that hinder pandemic-origin investigations and policy options that could help address these challenges.

A national strategy for investigating the genesis of pandemics could help pinpoint the root cause of outbreaks and help policymakers craft responses to prevent future pandemics.

Dr. Kolokotronis is among 27 experts recommended by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and selected by the GAO to help develop the report for Congress.

While Dr. Kolokotronis was the only participating expert from a New York State university or school of public health, Downstate was also represented by a second expert—COM alumnus Ali S. Khan, M.D., MPH, MBA, College of Public Health Dean at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Retired Assistant Surgeon General. Dr. Khan received an honorary doctorate of science from Downstate in 2021.

Thank you, Dr. Kolokotronis, for your work on this report. In addition to contributing to the public health knowledge base on pandemic prevention, your work elevates Downstate’s national reputation. 

The full report and a summary of highlights can be found here.

Tags: School of Public Health