pillaysureshnee@gmail.com +27 (0) 31 260 4654
Background
I am currently studying towards my Masters degree at the Africa Centre Virology Laboratory. My research involves investigating the virologic failure and the spectrum of drug resistance mutations in a paediatric ART programme in Rural KZN, SA. We used the open access Southern African Treatment Resistance Network (SATuRN) drug resistance genotyping system in this study to show that genotyping to assess resistance patterns and to guide treatment switches can be done affordably in resource limited settings such as ours.
Escape of SARS-CoV-2 501Y.V2 from neutralization by convalescent plasma..
Cele S, Gazy I, Jackson L, Hwa SH, Tegally H, Lustig G, Giandhari J, Pillay S, Wilkinson E, Naidoo Y, Karim F, Ganga Y, Khan K, Bernstein M, Balazs AB, Gosnell BI, Hanekom W, Moosa MS; NGS-SA; COMMIT-KZN Team, Lessells R, de Oliveira T, Sigal A., Nature (2021), DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-03471-w:.
A novel variant of interest of SARS-CoV-2 with multiple spike mutations detected through travel surveillance in Africa.
de Oliveira T, Lutucuta S, Nkengasong J, Morais J, Paixao JP, Neto Z, Afonso P, Miranda J, David K, Ingles L, Amilton P A P R R C, Freitas H R, Mufinda F, Tessema K S , Tegally H, San E J, Wilkinson E, Giandhari J, Pillay S, Giovanetti M, Naidoo Y, Katzourakis A, Ghafari M, Singh L, Tshiabuila D, Martin D, Lessells R, medRxiv (2021), :.
Safety and efficacy of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (AZD1222) Covid-19 vaccine against the B.1.351 variant in South Africa.
Madhi SA, Baillie VL, Cutland CL, Voysey M, KoenAL, Fairlie L, Padayachee SD, Dheda K, Barnabas SL, Bhorat QE, Briner C, Kwatra G, Ahmed K, Aley P, Bhikha S, Bhiman JN, Bhorat AE, du plessis J, Esmail A, Groenewald M, Horne E, Hwa S-H, Jose A, Lambe T, Laubscher M, Malahleha M, Masenya M, Masilela M, McKenzie S, Molapo K, Moultrie A, Oelofse S, Pate Fl, Pillay S, Rhead S, Rodel H, Rossouw L, Taoushanis C, Tegally H, Thombrayil A, van Eck S, Wibmer C, Durham NM, Kelly EJ, Villafana T, Gilbert S, Pollard AJ, de Oliveira T, Moore PL, Sigal A, Izu A, NGS-SA, Wits VIDA COVID vaccine trial group
, NEJM (2021), https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2102214:.
Emergence of a SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern with mutations in spike glycoprotein.
Tegally H, Wilkinson E, Giovanetti M, Iranzadeh A, Fonseca V, Giandhari J, Doolabh D, Pillay S, San E, Msomi N, Mlisana K, Gottberg A, Walaza S, Allam M, Ismail A, Mohale T, Glass A, Engelbrecht S, Zyl G, Preiser W, Petruccione F, Sigal A, Hardie D, Marais G, Hsiao M, Korsman S, Davies M, Tyers L, Mudau I, York D, Maslo C, Goedhals D, Abrahams S, Laguda-Akingba O, Alisoltani-Dehkordi A, Godzik A, Wibmer Cos, Sewell B, Lourenco J, Alcantara Ls, Kosakovsky Pond S, Weaver S, Martin D, Lessells R, Bhiman J, Williamson C, de Oliveira T, Nature (2021), https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03402-9:.
Sixteen novel lineages of SARS-CoV-2 in South Africa.
Tegally H, Wilkinson E, Lessells R, Giandhari J, Pillay S, Msomi N, Mlisana K, Bhiman J, Gottberg A, Walaza S, Fonseca V, Allam M, Ismail A, Engelbrecht S, Van Zyl G, Preiser W, Williamson C, Pettruccione F, Sigal A, Gazy I, Hardie D, Hsiao M, Martin D, York D, Goedhals D, San EJ, Giovanetti M, Lourenco J, Alcantara LCJ, de Oliveira T, Nature Medicine (2021), https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-021-01255-3:.
Escape of SARS-CoV-2 501Y.V2 variants from neutralization by convalescent plasma.
Cele S, Gazy I, Jackson L, Hwa S-H, Tegally H, Lustig G, Giandhari J, Pillay S, Wilkinson E, Naidoo Y, Karim F, Ganga Y, Khan K, Balazs AB, Gosnell BI, Hanekom W, Moosa MYS, NGS-SA, COMMIT-KZN Team, Lessells R, de Oliveira T, Sigal A, medRxiv (2021), 250224v1-Sigal:.
Emergence and rapid spread of a new severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) lineage with multiple spike mutations in South Africa.
Tegally H, Wilkinson E, Giovanetti M, Iranzadeh A, Fonseca V, Giandhari J, Doolabh D, Pillay S, San E, Msomi N, Mlisana K, Gottberg A, Walaza S, Allam M, Ismail A, Mohale T, Glass A, Engelbrecht S, Zyl G, Preiser W, Petruccione F, Sigal A, Hardie D, Marais G, Hsiao M, Korsman S, Davies M, Tyers L, Mudau I, York D, Maslo C, Goedhals D, Abrahams S, Laguda-Akingba O, Alisoltani-Dehkordi A, Godzik A, Wibmer Cos, Sewell B, Lourenço J, Alcantara Ls, Kosakovsky Pond S, Weaver S, Martin D, Lessells R, Bhiman J, Williamson C, de Oliveira T, medRxiv (2020), https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.12.21.20248640:.
High Resolution analysis of Transmission Dynamics of Sars-Cov-2 in Two Major Hospital Outbreaks in South Africa Leveraging Intrahost Diversity.
San EJ, Ngcapu S, Kanzi A, Tegally H, Fonseca V, Giandhari J, Wilkinson E, Chimukangara B, Pillay S, Singh L, Fish M, Gazy I, Khanyile KS, Lessells R, de Oliveira T, medRxiv (2020), https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.11.15.20231993:.
A genomics network established to respond rapidly to public health threats in South Africa.
Msomi N, Mlisana K, Willianson C, Bhiman JN, Goedhals D, Engelbrecht S, Van Zyl G, Preiser W, Hardie D, Hsiao M, Mulder N, Martin D, Christoffels A, York D, Giandhari J, Wilkinson E, Pillay S, Tegally H, James SE, Kanzi A, Lessells RJ, de Oliveira T, Lancet Microbe (2020), https://doi.org/10.1016/S2666-5247(20)30116-6:.
Whole Genome Sequencing of SARS-CoV-2: Adapting Illumina Protocols for Quick and Accurate Outbreak Investigation During a Pandemic.
Pillay S, Giandhari J, Tegally H, Wilkinson E, Chimukangara B, Lessells R, Mattison S, Moosa Y, Gazy I, Fish M, Singh L, Khanyile KS, Fonseca V, Giovanetti M, Alcantara LCJ, de Oliveira T, Genes (2020), doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/genes11080949:11(8), 949.
Early transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in South Africa: An epidemiological and phylogenetic report.
Giandhari J, Pillay S, Wilkinson E, Tegally H, Sinayskiy I, Schuld M, Lourenço J, Chimukangara B, Lessells R, Moosa Y, Gazy I, Fish M, Singh L, Khanyile KS, Fonseca V, Giovanetti M, Alcantara LCJ, Petruccione F, de Oliveira T, IJID (2020), doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2020.11.128:.
HIV drug resistance levels in adults failing first-line antiretroviral therapy in an urban and a rural setting in South Africa.
Rossouw TM, Nieuwoudt M, Manasa J, Malherbe G, Lessells RJ, Pillay S, Danaviah S, Mahasha P, van Dyk G, de Oliveira T, HIV Med. (2017), 2016 :doi: 10.1111/hiv.12400.
Increasing HIV-1 drug resistance between 2010 and 2012 in adults participating in population-based HIV surveillance in rural KwaZulu-Natal South Africa.
Manasa J, Danaviah S, Lessells RJ, Elshareef M, Tanser F, Wilkinson E, Pillay S, Mthiyane H, Mwambi H, Pillay D, de Oliveira T, AIDS Res Hum Retroviruses (2016), 32(8):763-769.
Analysis of Dominant HIV Quasispecies Suggests Independent Viral Evolution Within Spinal Granulomas Coinfected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis and HIV-1 Subtype C.
Danaviah S, de Oliveira T, Gordon M, Govender S, Chelule P, Pillay S, Naicker T, Cassol S, Ndung'u T, AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses (2016), :doi:10.1089/aid.2015.0189.
Evidence of Long-Lived Founder Virus in Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission.
Danaviah S, de Oliveira T, Bland R, Viljoen J, Pillay S, Tuaillon E, Van de Perre P, Newell ML, PLoS One (2015), 10(3):e0120389.
Drug resistance in children at virological failure in a rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, cohort.
Pillay S, Bland RM, Lessells RJ, Manasa J, de Oliveira T, Danaviah S., AIDS Res Ther. (2014), 11(1):3. doi: 10.1186/1742-6405-11-3.
An Affordable HIV-1 Drug Resistance Monitoring Method for Resource Limited Settings.
Manasa J, Danaviah S, Pillay S, Padayachee P, Mthiyane H, Seebregts C, Rinke De Wit TF, Viljoen J, Katzenstein D, De Oliveira T , Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE) (2014), (85):e51242, doi:10.3791/51242.
Dried Blood Spot HIV-1 RNA Quantification Using Open Real-Time Systems in South Africa and Burkina Faso.
Viljoen J, Gampini S, Danaviah S, Valea D, Pillay S, Kania D, Meda N, Newell ML, Van de Perre P, Rouet F; for the World Health Organization/ANRS 1289 Kesho Bora Study Group, Acquir Immune Defic Syndr (2010), 55(3):290-8.
South Africa joins 'Big 5' COVID-19 countries - Mybroadband - 2020-07-18
Experts question underreported' virus deaths in South Africa - Businesstech - 2020-07-18
South Africa Data May Underreport Virus Deaths, Experts Say - Bloomberg - 2020-07-18
SA government plans for Covid-19 to peak in September but questions about data remain - News24 - 2020-04-12
KRISP team goes to Brazil to work with FioCruz & Oxford on Yellow Fever Outbreak - KRISP News - 2018-04-27
Even with easy access to ARVs, only one in three HIV-positive people will seek them - KRISP News - 2017-12-05
South Africans with HIV miss out on the benefits of early treatment due to a fear of stigma - KRISP News - 2017-12-02
KwaZulu-Natal Research and Innovation Sequencing Platform (KRISP) Established - KRISP News - 2017-07-12
South Africa's bid to end AIDS - Science - 2016-06-29
Research travel grants: Doctoral or post-doctoral students to Wellcome Trust Africa Centre, South Africa - WTAC & MRC Flagship UKZN - 2015-08-15
AWACC & SATuRN conference a success! Please see twitter summary - SATuRN & AWACC - 2014-10-13
Doris Duke Annual Seminar for Medical Students from Harvard and UKZN - SATuRN & Harvard - 2014-10-09
Postdoctoral Research Fellows in HIV - WT Africa Centre, UCL & LSHTM - 2014-07-17
SATURN-PASER unites international minds & reveals potential resistance free HIV drug - AIGHD - 2013-11-26
New Director named for leading HIV research centre in South Africa - Wellcome Trust - 2013-09-02
How a team of scientists worked tirelessly to help the COVID-19 response in Africa - YouTube - 2020-08-23
Sequencing SARS-CoV-2 in Africa in real-time to control COVID-19 outbreaks - YouTube - 2020-05-20
An Affordable HIV-1 Drug Resistance Monitoring Method for Resource Limited Settings - YouTube - 2013-10-18
KRISP has been created by the coordinated effort of the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) and the South African Medical Research Countil (SAMRC).
Location: K-RITH Tower Building
Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, UKZN
719 Umbilo Road, Durban, South Africa.
Director: Prof. Tulio de Oliveira