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Dr Estee Torok

Biography

Dr Estee Torok is Senior Program Officer in Malaria / Global Health at the Gates Foundation where  she leads the malaria genomic surveillance portfolio. She is also an Honorary Infectious Diseases Physician & Clinical Microbiologist at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and an Affiliated Associate Professor at the University of Cambridge. She has 30 years clinical research experience in malaria, TB, HIV, viral hepatitis, antimicrobial resistance and COVID-19 and microbial genomics. She has published 3 books and over 250 scientific research articles (h-index 89). She has led postgraduate courses in clinical medicine, microbiology, genomics and antimicrobial resistance at the University of Cambridge and the Wellcome Sanger Institute and is highly committed to diversity, equity and inclusion.

Publications

Key publications: 
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  1. Smith EW, Hamilton WL, Warne B, Walker ER, Jahun AS, Hosmillo M; ISARIC Consortium; Gupta RK, Goodfellow I, Gkrania-Klotsas E, Török ME, Illingworth CJR. Variable rates of SARS-CoV-2 evolution in chronic infections. PLoS Pathog. 2025 Apr 28;21(4):e1013109.
  2. Dada N, Simpson VJ, Amenga-Etego LN, Oriero E, Miotto O, Torok ME, Juma EO, Williams NA, Rajatileka S, Ariani CV, Raman J, Ishengoma DS. Towards integrated malaria molecular surveillance in Africa. Trends Parasitol. 2024; 40:964-969.
  3. Coll F, Gouliouris T, Blane B, Yeats CA, Raven KE, Ludden C, Khokhar FA, Wilson HJ, Roberts LW, Harrison EM, Horner CS, Le TH, Nguyen TH, Nguyen VT, Brown NM, Holmes MA, Parkhill J, Török ME, Peacock SJ. Antibiotic resistance determination using Enterococcus faecium whole-genome sequences: a diagnostic accuracy study using genotypic and phenotypic data. Lancet Microbe. 2024; S2666- 5247:00297-5.
  4. Hamilton WL, Coscione S, Maes M, Warne B, Pike LJ, Khokhar FA, Blane B, Brown NM, Gouliouris T, Dougan G, Török ME, Baker S. The clinical, genomic, and microbiological profile of invasive multidrug resistant Escherichia coli in a major teaching hospital in the United Kingdom. Microb Genom. 2023; 9:001122
  5. Roberts LW, Enoch DA, Khokhar F, Blackwell GA, Wilson H, Warne B, Gouliouris T, Iqbal Z, Török ME. Long-read sequencing reveals genomic diversity and associated plasmid movement of carbapenemase-producing bacteria in a UK hospital over 6 years. Microb Genom. 2023; 9:mgen001048.
  6. Pham MH, Hoi LT, Beale MA, Khokhar FA, Hoa NT, Musicha P, Blackwell GA, Long HB, Huong DT, Binh NG, Co DX, Giang T, Bui C, Tran HN, Bryan J, Herrick A, Feltwell T, Nadjm B, Parkhill J, van Doorn HR, Trung NV, Van Kinh N, Török ME, Thomson NR. Evidence of widespread endemic populations of highly multidrug resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae in hospital settings in Hanoi, Vietnam: a prospective cohort study. Lancet Microbe. 2023; 4:e255-e263.
  7. Cooper DJ, Lear S, Watson L, Shaw A, Ferris M, Doffinger R, Bousfield R, Sharrocks K, Weekes MP, Warne B, Sparkes D, Jones NK, Rivett L, Routledge M, Chaudhry A, Dempsey K, Matson M, Lakha A, Gathercole G, O'Connor O, Wilson E, Shahzad O, Toms K, Thompson R, Halsall I, Halsall D, Houghton S, Papadia S, Kingston N, Stirrups KE, Graves B, Townsend P, Walker N, Stark H; CITIID-NIHR BioResource COVID-19 Collaboration; De Angelis D, Seaman S, Dougan G, Bradley JR, Török ME, Goodfellow I, Baker S. A prospective study of risk factors associated with seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in healthcare workers at a large UK teaching hospital. J Infect. 2022; 85:557-564.
  8. Roberts LW, Hoi LT, Khokhar FA, Hoa NT, Giang TV, Bui C, Ninh TH, Co DX, BinhNG, Long HB, Huong DT, Bryan JE, Herrick A, Feltwell T, Nadjm B, van Doorn HR, Parkhill J, Trung NV, Kinh NV, Iqbal Z, Török ME. Genomic characterisation of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Acinetobacter baumannii in two intensive care units in Hanoi, Viet Nam: a prospective observational cohort study. Lancet Microbe. 2022; 3:e857-e866.
  9. Illingworth CJR, Hamilton WL, Jackson C, Warne B, Popay A, Meredith L, Hosmillo M, Jahun A, Fieldman T, Routledge M, Houldcroft CJ, Caller L, Caddy S, Yakovleva A, Hall G, Khokhar FA, Feltwell T, Pinckert ML, Georgana I, Chaudhry Y, Curran M, Parmar S, Sparkes D, Rivett L, Jones NK, Sridhar S, Forrest S, Dymond T, Grainger K, Workman C, Gkrania-Klotsas E, Brown NM, Weekes MP, Baker S, Peacock SJ, Gouliouris T, Goodfellow I, Angelis D, Török ME. A2B-COVID: A Tool for Rapidly Evaluating Potential SARS-CoV-2 Transmission Events. Mol Biol Evol. 2022; 39:msac025.
  10. Aggarwal D, Myers R, Hamilton WL, Bharucha T, Tumelty NM, Brown CS, Meader EJ, Connor T, Smith DL, Bradley DT, Robson S, Bashton M, Shallcross L, Zambon M, Goodfellow I, Chand M, O'Grady J, Török ME, Peacock SJ, Page AJ; COVID-19 Genomics UK (COG-UK) Consortium. The role of viral genomics in understanding COVID-19 outbreaks in long-term care facilities. Lancet Microbe. 2022 Feb;3(2):e151-e158. doi: 10.1016/S2666-5247(21)00208-1. Epub 2021 Sep 29.
  11. Illingworth CJ, Hamilton WL, Warne B, Routledge M, Popay A, Jackson C, Fieldman T, Meredith LW, Houldcroft CJ, Hosmillo M, Jahun AS, Caller LG, Caddy SL, Yakovleva A, Hall G, Khokhar FA, Feltwell T, Pinckert ML, Georgana I, Chaudhry Y, Curran MD, Parmar S, Sparkes D, Rivett L, Jones NK, Sridhar S, Forrest S, Dymond T, Grainger K, Workman C, Ferris M, Gkrania-Klotsas E, Brown NM, Weekes MP, Baker S, Peacock SJ, Goodfellow IG, Gouliouris T, de Angelis D, Török ME. Superspreaders drive the largest outbreaks of hospital onset COVID-19 infections. Elife. 2021; 10:e67308.
  12. Török ME, Underwood BR, Toshner M, Waddington C, Sidhom E, Sharrocks K, Bousfield R, Summers C, Saunders C, McIntyre Z, Morris H, Piper J, Calderon G, Dennis S, Assari T, de Rotrou AM, Shaw A, Bradley J, O'Brien J, Rintoul RC, Smith I, Bullmore E, Chatterjee K; Cambridge COVID Vaccine Trial Team. Challenges and opportunities for conducting a vaccine trial during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. Clin Trials. 2021:17407745211024764.
  13. Hamilton WL, Fieldman T, Jahun A, Warne B, Illingworth CJR, Jackson C, Blane B, Moore E, Weekes MP, Peacock SJ, De Angelis D, Goodfellow I, Gouliouris T, Török ME; Cambridge COVID-19 group. Applying prospective genomic surveillance to support investigation of hospital-onset COVID-19. Lancet Infect Dis. 2021:S1473-3099(21)00251-6.
  14. Hamilton WL, Tonkin-Hill G, Smith ER, Aggarwal D, Houldcroft CJ, Warne B, Brown CS, Meredith LW, Hosmillo M, Jahun AS, Curran MD, Parmar S, Caller LG, Caddy SL, Khokhar FA, Yakovleva A, Hall G, Feltwell T, Pinckert ML, Georgana I, Chaudhry Y, Brown NM, Gonçalves S, Amato R, Harrison EM, Beale MA, Spencer Chapman M, Jackson DK, Johnston I, Alderton A, Sillitoe J, Langford C None, Dougan G, Peacock SJ, Kwiatowski DP, Goodfellow IG, Török ME; COVID-19 Genomics Consortium UK. Genomic epidemiology of COVID-19 in care homes in the East of England. Elife. 2021; 10:e64618.
  15. Voysey M, Costa Clemens SA, Madhi SA, Weckx LY, Folegatti PM, Aley PK, Angus B, Baillie VL, Barnabas SL, Bhorat QE, Bibi S, Briner C, Cicconi P, Clutterbuck EA, Collins AM, Cutland CL, Darton TC, Dheda K, Dold C, Duncan CJA, Emary KRW, Ewer KJ, Flaxman A, Fairlie L, Faust SN, Feng S, Ferreira DM, Finn A, Galiza E, Goodman AL, Green CM, Green CA, Greenland M, Hill C, Hill HC, Hirsch I, Izu A, Jenkin D, Joe CCD, Kerridge S, Koen A, Kwatra G, Lazarus R, Libri V, Lillie PJ, Marchevsky NG, Marshall RP, Mendes AVA, Milan EP, Minassian AM, McGregor A, Mujadidi YF, Nana A, Padayachee SD, Phillips DJ, Pittella A, Plested E, Pollock KM, Ramasamy MN, Ritchie AJ, Robinson H, Schwarzbold AV, Smith A, Song R, Snape MD, Sprinz E, Sutherland RK, Thomson EC, Török ME, Toshner M, Turner DPJ, Vekemans J, Villafana TL, White T, Williams CJ, Douglas AD, Hill AVS, Lambe T, Gilbert SC, Pollard AJ; Oxford COVID Vaccine Trial Group. Single-dose administration and the influence of the timing of the booster dose on immunogenicity and efficacy of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (AZD1222) vaccine: a pooled analysis of four randomised trials. Lancet. 2021: S0140-6736(21)00432-3.
  16. Voysey M, Clemens SAC, Madhi SA, Weckx LY, Folegatti PM, Aley PK, Angus B, Baillie VL, Barnabas SL, Bhorat QE, Bibi S, Briner C, Cicconi P, Collins AM, Colin-Jones R, Cutland CL, Darton TC, Dheda K, Duncan CJA, Emary KRW, Ewer KJ, Fairlie L, Faust SN, Feng S, Ferreira DM, Finn A, Goodman AL, Green CM, Green CA, Heath PT, Hill C, Hill H, Hirsch I, Hodgson SHC, Izu A, Jackson S, Jenkin D, Joe CCD, Kerridge S, Koen A, Kwatra G, Lazarus R, Lawrie AM, Lelliott A, Libri V, Lillie PJ, Mallory R, Mendes AVA, Milan EP, Minassian AM, McGregor A, Morrison H, Mujadidi YF, Nana A, O'Reilly PJ, Padayachee SD, Pittella A, Plested E, Pollock KM, Ramasamy MN, Rhead S, Schwarzbold AV, Singh N, Smith A, Song R, Snape MD, Sprinz E, Sutherland RK, Tarrant R, Thomson EC, Török ME, Toshner M, Turner DPJ, Vekemans J, Villafana TL, Watson MEE, Williams CJ, Douglas AD, Hill AVS, Lambe T, Gilbert SC, Pollard AJ; Oxford COVID Vaccine Trial Group. Safety and efficacy of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine (AZD1222) against SARS-CoV-2: an interim analysis of four randomised controlled trials in Brazil, South Africa, and the UK. Lancet. 2020: S0140-6736(20)32661-1.
  17. Gouliouris T, Coll F, Ludden C, Blane B, Raven KE, Naydenova P, Crawley C, Török ME, Enoch DA, Brown NM, Harrison EM, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. Quantifying acquisition and transmission of Enterococcus faecium using genomic surveillance. Nat Microbiol. 2021 Jan;6(1):103-111. doi: 10.1038/s41564-020-00806-7. Epub 2020 Oct 26.
  18. Kuehl R, Morata L, Boeing C, Subirana I, Seifert H, Rieg S, Kern WV, Kim HB, Kim ES, Liao CH, Tilley R, Lopez-Cortés LE, Llewelyn MJ, Fowler VG, Thwaites G, Cisneros JM, Scarborough M, Nsutebu E, Gurgui Ferrer M, Pérez JL, Barlow G, Hopkins S, Ternavasio-de la Vega HG, Török ME, Wilson P, Kaasch AJ, Soriano A; International Staphylococcus aureus collaboration study group and the ESCMID Study Group for Bloodstream Infections, Endocarditis and Sepsis. Defining persistent Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia: secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study. Lancet Infect Dis. 2020:S1473-3099(20)30447-3.
  19. Meredith LW, Hamilton WL, Warne B, Houldcroft CJ, Hosmillo M, Jahun AS, Curran MD, Parmar S, Caller LG, Caddy SL, Khokhar FA, Yakovleva A, Hall G, Feltwell T, Forrest S, Sridhar S, Weekes MP, Baker S, Brown N, Moore E, Popay A, Roddick I, Reacher M, Gouliouris T, Peacock SJ, Dougan G, Török ME, Goodfellow I. Rapid implementation of SARS-CoV-2 sequencing to investigate cases of health-care associated COVID-19: a prospective genomic surveillance study. Lancet Infect Dis. 2020 Jul 14: S1473-3099(20)30562-4. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(20)30562-4. PMID: 32679081
  20. Toleman MS, Reuter S, Jamrozy D, Wilson HJ, Blane B, Harrsion EM, Coll F, Hope RJ, Kearns A, Parkhill SJ and Török ME. Prospective genomic surveillance of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus associated with bloodstream infection England 1 October 2012 to 30 September 2013. Euro Surveill. 2019;24(4):pii=1800215. https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.
  21. Wilson HJ, Khokhar F, Enoch DA, Brown NM, Ahluwalia J, Dougan G, Török ME. Point prevalence survey of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) in adult inpatients in a University teaching hospital in the United Kingdom. J Hosp Infect. 2018 Jun 30. pii: S0195-6701(18)30361-X. doi:10.1016/j.jhin.2018.06.024
  22. Wilson H, Török ME. Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase producing and carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae. Microb Genom. 2018 Jul;4(7). doi: 10.1099/mgen.0.000197. Epub 2018 Jul 23.
  23. Thwaites GE, Scarborough M, Szubert A, Nsutebu E, Tilley R, Greig J, Wyllie SA, Wilson P, Auckland C, Cairns J, Ward D, Lal P, Guleri A, Jenkins N, Sutton J, Wiselka M, Armando GR, Graham C, Chadwick PR, Barlow G, Gordon NC, Young B, Meisner S, McWhinney P, Price DA, Harvey D, Nayar D, Jeyaratnam D, Planche T, Minton J, Hudson F, Hopkins S, Williams J, Török ME, Llewelyn MJ, Edgeworth JD, Walker AS; United Kingdom Clinical Infection Research Group (UKCIRG). Adjunctive rifampicin for Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (ARREST): a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet. 2017 Dec 14. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(17)32456-X.
  24.  Coll F, Harrison EM, Toleman MS, Reuter S, Raven KE, Blane B, Palmer B, Kappeler ARM, Brown NM, Török ME, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. Longitudinal genomic surveillance of MRSA in the UK reveals transmission patterns in hospitals and the community. Sci Transl Med. 2017 Oct 25;9(413).
  25. Harrison EM, Ludden C, Brodrick HJ, Blane B, Brennan G, Morris D, Coll F, Reuter S, Brown NM, Holmes MA, O'Connell B, Parkhill J, Török ME, Cormican M, Peacock SJ. Transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in long-term care facilities and their related healthcare networks. Genome Med. 2016 Oct 3;8(1):102.
  26. Raven KE, Reuter S, Gouliouris T, Reynolds R, Russell JE, Brown NM, Török ME, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. Genome-based characterization of hospital-adapted Enterococcus faecalis lineages. Nat Microbiol. 2016 Feb 8;1:15033. doi: 10.1038/nmicrobiol.2015.33.
  27. Raven KE, Reuter S, Reynolds R, Brodrick HJ, Russell JE, Török ME, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. A decade of genomic history for healthcare-associated Enterococcus faecium in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Genome Res. 2016 Oct;26(10):1388-1396
  28. Toleman MS, Reuter S, Coll F, Harrison EM, Blane B, Brown NM, Török ME, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. Systematic Surveillance Detects Multiple Silent Introductions and Household Transmission of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus USA300 in the East of England. J Infect Dis. 2016 Aug 1;214(3):447-53.
  29. Brodrick HJ, Raven KE, Harrison EM, Blane B, Reuter S, Török ME, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. Whole-genome sequencing reveals transmission of vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium in a healthcare network. Genome Med. 2016 Jan 12;8(1):4.
  30. Reuter S, Török ME, Holden MT, Reynolds R, Raven KE, Blane B, Donker T, Bentley SD, Aanensen DM, Grundmann H, Feil EJ, Spratt BG, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. Building a genomic framework for prospective MRSA surveillance in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. Genome Res. 2016 Feb;26(2):263-70.
  31. Saunderson RB, Gouliouris T, Nickerson EK, Cartwright EJ, Kidney A, Aliyu SH, Brown NM, Limmathurotsakul D, Peacock SJ, Török ME. Impact of routine bedside infectious disease consultation on clinical management and outcome of Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia in adults. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2015 Aug;21(8):779-85.
  32. Köser CU, Javid B, Liddell K, Ellington MJ, Feuerriegel S, Niemann S, Brown NM, Burman WJ, Abubakar I, Ismail NA, Moore D, Peacock SJ, Török ME. Drug-resistance mechanisms and tuberculosis drugs. Lancet. 2015 Jan 24;385(9965):305-7.
  33. Saunderson RB, Gouliouris T, Cartwright EJ, Nickerson EJ, Aliyu SH, O'Donnell DR, Kelsall W, Limmathurotsakul D, Peacock SJ, Török ME. Impact of infectious diseases consultation on the management of Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia in children. BMJ Open. 2014 Jul 1;4(7):e004659.
  34. Török ME, Harris SR, Cartwright EJ, Raven KE, Brown NM, Allison ME, Greaves D, Quail MA, Limmathurotsakul D, Holden MT, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. Zero tolerance for healthcare-associated MRSA bacteraemia: is it realistic? J Antimicrob Chemother. 2014 Aug;69(8):2238-45.
  35. Köser CU, Fraser LJ, Ioannou A, Becq J, Ellington MJ, Holden MT, Reuter S, Török ME, Bentley SD, Parkhill J, Gormley NA, Smith GP, Peacock SJ. Rapid single-colony whole-genome sequencing of bacterial pathogens. J Antimicrob Chemother. 2014 May;69(5):1275-81.
  36. Köser CU, Bryant JM, Becq J, Török ME, Ellington MJ, Marti-Renom MA, Carmichael AJ, Parkhill J, Smith GP, Peacock SJ. Whole-genome sequencing for rapid susceptibility testing of M. tuberculosis. N Engl J Med. 2013 Jul 18;369(3):290-2.
  37. Reuter S, Ellington MJ, Cartwright EJ, Köser CU, Török ME, Gouliouris T, Harris SR, Brown NM, Holden MT, Quail M, Parkhill J, Smith GP, Bentley SD, Peacock SJ. Rapid bacterial whole-genome sequencing to enhance diagnostic and public health microbiology. JAMA Intern Med. 2013 Aug 12;173(15):1397-404.
  38. Harris SR, Török ME, Cartwright EJ, Quail MA, Peacock SJ, Parkhill J. Read and assembly metrics inconsequential for clinical utility of whole-genome sequencing in mapping outbreaks. Nat Biotechnol. 2013 Jul;31(7):592-4.
  39. Cartwright EJ, Paterson GK, Raven KE, Harrison EM, Gouliouris T, Kearns A, Pichon B, Edwards G, Skov RL, Larsen AR, Holmes MA, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ, Török ME. Use of Vitek 2 antimicrobial susceptibility profile to identify mecC in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. J Clin Microbiol. 2013 Aug;51(8):2732-4.
  40. Reuter S, Harrison TG, Köser CU, Ellington MJ, Smith GP, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ, Bentley SD, Török ME. A pilot study of rapid whole-genome sequencing for the investigation of a Legionella outbreak. BMJ Open. 2013 Jan 9;3(1).
  41. Török ME, Reuter S, Bryant J, Köser CU, Stinchcombe SV, Nazareth B, Ellington MJ, Bentley SD, Smith GP, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. Rapid whole-genome sequencing for investigation of a suspected tuberculosis outbreak. J Clin Microbiol. 2013 Feb;51(2):611-4.
  42. Harris SR, Cartwright EJ, Török ME, Holden MT, Brown NM, Ogilvy-Stuart AL, Ellington MJ, Quail MA, Bentley SD, Parkhill J, Peacock SJ. Whole-genome sequencing for analysis of an outbreak of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: a descriptive study. Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Feb;13(2):130-6.
  43. Török ME, Nguyen DB, Tran TH, Nguyen TB, Thwaites GE, Hoang TQ, Nguyen HD, Tran TH, Nguyen TC, Hoang HT, Wolbers M, Farrar JJ. Dexamethasone and long-term outcome of tuberculous meningitis in Vietnamese adults and adolescents. PLoS One. 2011;6(12):e27821.
  44. Török ME, Yen NT, Chau TT, Mai NT, Phu NH, Mai PP, Dung NT, Chau NV, Bang ND, Tien NA, Minh NH, Hien NQ, Thai PV, Dong DT, Anh DT, Thoa NT, Hai NN, Lan NN, Lan NT, Quy HT, Dung NH, Hien TT, Chinh NT, Simmons CP, de Jong M, Wolbers M, Farrar JJ. Timing of initiation of antiretroviral therapy in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated tuberculous meningitis. Clin Infect Dis. 2011Jun;52(11):1374-83.
Senior Program Officer, Malaria / Global Health, Gates Foundation
Honorary Consultant in Infectious Diseases & Microbiology, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Affiliated Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Cambridge
Affiliated Researcher, St John's College, University of Cambridge
Dr Estee Torok

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