Dr Yvonne Su is an Assistant Professor in the Emerging Infectious Diseases Programme at Duke-NUS Medical School.
Asst Prof Su’s research at the Laboratory of Virus Evolution focuses on the evolution and emergence of respiratory pathogens, particularly fast evolving influenza viruses. Her research utilizes next-generation sequencing and metagenomics approaches to generate data for phylogenetic analyses to understand the evolutionary processes of viral infectious diseases. Her studies investigate the complex interplay of mutation, genetic and antigenic evolution, natural selection, reassortment, epidemiology and spatial-temporal transmission patterns that shape virus diversity and evolution. Her research helps to understand the evolutionary drivers of seasonal epidemics and global migration patterns of influenza A and B viruses in time and space, as well as to detect emerging novel virus variants. Her research also bridges computational and experimental approaches in studying the effects of epistatic mutations.
Asst Prof Su also investigates the adaptive mechanisms of inter-species transmission of avian, swine and human influenza viruses (e.g. swine to humans) to identify important molecular determinants in viral genomes that contribute to adaptation to new hosts following cross species transmission. As an evolutionary biologist, she has conducted bioinformatics and phylogenetics training workshops for ASEAN countries, organized by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO).
Asst Prof Su is currently leading research on analysing the genomic data of SARS-COV-2 virus through next-generation sequencing and conducting phylogenetic analyses to track viral evolution and to monitor genetic changes in the SARS-COV-2 virus and their potential implications for the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Neves ES, Mendenhall H, Borthwick SA, Su YCF and Smith GJD. (2018) Detection and genetic characterization of diverse Bartonella genotypes in the small mammals of Singapore. Zoonoses Public Health, 65: e207–e215.
Mendenhall IH, Skiles MM, Neves ES, Borthwick SA, Low DHW, Liang B, Lee BPYH, Su YCF and Smith GJD. (2017) Influence of age and body condition on astrovirus infection of bats in Singapore: an evolutionary and epidemiological analysis. One Health, 4: 27–33.
Joseph U, Vijaykrishna D, Smith GJD and Su YCF. (2017) Adaptive evolution during the establishment of European avian-like H1N1 influenza A virus in swine. Evolutionary Applications. doi: 10.1111/eva.12536
Joseph U, Su YCF, Vijaykrishna D and Smith GJD. (2017) The ecology and adaptive evolution of influenza A interspecies transmission. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses, 11:74–84. doi:10.1111/irv.12412.
Hurt AC, Su YCF, Aban M, Peck H, Lau H, Baas C, Spirason N, Ellström P, Hernandez J, Olsen B, Barr IG, Vijaykrishna D and Gonzalez-Acuna D. (2016) Evidence for the introduction, reassortment and persistence of diverse influenza A viruses in Antarctica. Journal of Virology, 90: 9674–9682.
Tun ZM, Moorthy M, Linster M, Su YCF, Coker RJ, Ooi EE, Low G-H, Smith GJD and Tam CC. (2016) Characteristics of acute febrile illness and determinants of illness recovery among adults presenting to Singapore primary care clinics. BMC Infectious Diseases, 16: 612.
Mendenhall IH, Borthwick S, Neves ES, Low D, Linster M, Liang B, Skiles M, Jayakumar J, Han H, Gunalan V, Lee B, Okahara K, Wang L-F, Maurer-Stroh S, Su YCF and Smith GJD. (2016) Identification of a lineage D Betacoronavirus in a cave nectar bat (Eonycteris spelaea) in Singapore and an overview of lineage D reservoir ecology in SE Asian bats. Transboundary and Emerging Diseases. doi: 10.1111/tbed.12568.
Su YCF, Bahl J, Joseph U, Butt KM, Peck HA, Koay ESC, Oon LLE, Barr IG, Vijaykrishna D and Smith GJD. (2015) Phylodynamics of H1N1/2009 influenza reveals the transition from host adaptation to immune driven selection. Nature Communications 6: 7952. doi:10.1038/ncomms8952
Sam I-C, Su YCF*, Chan YF, Nor’E S, Hassan A, Jafar F, Joseph U, Halpin R, Ghedin E, Hooi PS, Fourment M, Hassan H, AluBakar S, Wentworth D and Smith GJD. (2015) Evolution of influenza B virus in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia between 1995 and 2008. Journal of Virology, 89: 9689–9682. *co-first author
Vijaykrishna D, Holmes EC, Joseph U, Fourment M, Su YCF, Halpin R, Lee RTC, Deng YM, Gunalan V, Lin X, Stockwell TB, Fedorova NB, Zhou B, Spirason N, Kühnert D, Boskova V, Stadler T, Costa A-M, Dwyer DE, Huang QS, Jennings LC, Rawlinson W, Sullivan SG, Hurt AC, Maurer-Stroh S, Wenworth DE, Smith GJD and Barr IG. (2015) The contrasting phylodynamics of human influenza B viruses. eLife, 4: e05055.
Vijaykrishna D, Deng YM, Su YCF, Fourment M, Iannello P, Arzey GG, Hansbro PM, Arzey KE, Kirkland PD, Warner S, O’Riley K, Barr IG, GJD Smith and Hurt AC. (2013) The recent establishment of North American H10 lineage influenza viruses in Australian wild waterfowl and the evolution of Australian avian influenza viruses. Journal of Virology, 87: 10182–10189.
Mo S, You M, Su YCF, Smith GJD, Leung WK and Watt RM. (2013) Multilocus sequence analysis of Treponema denticola strains of diverse origin. BMC Microbiology, 13:24.
Bahl J, Krauss S, Kühnert D, Fourment M, Raven G, Pryor SP, Niles LJ, Danner A, Walker D, IH Mendenhall, Su YCF, VG Dugan, Halpin RA, Stockwell TB, Webby RJ, Wentworth DE, Drummond AJ, Smith GJD and Webster RG. (2013) Influenza A virus migration and persistence in North American wild birds. PloS Pathogens, 9(8): e1003570.
Book (refereed)
Su YCF and Saunders RMK. (2006) Monograph of Pseuduvaria (Annonaceae). Systematic Botany Monographs 79. Ann Arbor, Michigan: The American Society of Plant Taxonomists (204 pages, ISBN-9780912861791).