Birgit De Smet

Birgit De Smet is a researcher in Tropical Bacteriology at the Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITG) in Antwerp, Belgium. Her work focuses on infectious disease outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and related diagnostic development.

Her research interests center on tropical infectious diseases with particular expertise in arboviruses including Chikungunya, Zika, and Ebola viruses, as well as bacterial pathogens like Burkholderia pseudomallei causing melioidosis. Her work spans molecular characterization, outbreak investigation, and diagnostic test development.

Analysis of her publication trends shows consistent research output from 2011-2021 with particular emphasis on viral outbreaks in Central Africa. Her work demonstrates strong collaboration with Congolese institutions and international researchers, focusing on both clinical management and ecological aspects of emerging infectious diseases.

She has been involved in significant research projects including ARMADA (2015-2018), which focused on developing pan-arbovirus diagnostic tests for clinical management of non-malaria febrile illnesses.