Simon Dellicour

Simon Dellicour is a prominent researcher in molecular and spatial epidemiology, holding dual academic positions as an F.R.S.-FNRS Research Associate at Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and Visiting Professor at KU Leuven. He directs the Spatial Epidemiology Lab, where he leads research at the intersection of epidemiology, phylogenetics, and spatial analysis. His work bridges theoretical methodological developments with practical applications in disease surveillance and control.

Dr. Dellicour completed his bioengineering degree at UCLouvain in 2009, followed by a PhD at ULB (2009-2013) under Patrick Mardulyn. His postdoctoral journey included positions at Oxford with Oliver Pybus (2013-2015), KU Leuven with Philippe Lemey (2015-2018), and the Spatial Epidemiology Lab with Marius Gilbert (2018-2020). In 2020, he secured the prestigious FNRS Research Associate position, a permanent academic appointment from the Belgian national research foundation.

His research focuses on landscape phylogeography, developing and applying innovative methods to understand pathogen spread across geographical landscapes. His work integrates molecular epidemiology with spatial analysis to track disease transmission patterns for zoonotic and vector-borne diseases. He has made significant contributions to viral evolution research, including studies on SARS-CoV-2 variants, avian influenza, and West Nile virus. His methodological innovations include software packages like GCALIGNER, SPADS, PHYLOGEOSIM, SERAPHIM, KoT, NOSOI, PHYCOVA, SPREAD4, and Spread.gl, which have become valuable tools in molecular epidemiology.

His publication record demonstrates consistent application of phylogeographic methods to understand pathogen spread. Recent work examines avian influenza dynamics across Europe, SARS-CoV-2 origins in bats, West Nile virus expansion related to climate change, and methodological improvements in viral landscape phylogeography. His research bridges computational methods with practical public health applications through interdisciplinary collaborations.

Dr. Dellicour teaches Introduction to spatial and molecular epidemiology (BING-F432), Experimental design and data analysis (BING-F4002), and Seminars of data analysis (BING-F535). His role as research director involves mentorship of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, though specific advisees aren't listed in the provided information.

As director of the Spatial Epidemiology Lab, Dr. Dellicour leads a research team focused on developing spatial and molecular epidemiological methods. The lab maintains extensive international collaborations across Europe and globally, as evidenced by the multinational authorship on his publications. His work consistently integrates virology, ecology, statistics, and public health expertise to address complex questions about disease emergence and spread.