Baron Peter Karel Piot, the Belgian scientist credited with the discovery of the Ebola virus will deliver the Hyderabad Lecture series 2019, sponsored by the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India (IRDAI) at the University of Hyderabad (UoH) on Friday.
The noted microbiologist will speak on “100 years after the Spanish Flu: Are we ready for the epidemic”, at the School of Life Sciences of the University.
The 70 year old Professor is known for his pathbreaking work on Ebola and AIDS viruses. After helping discover Ebola in 1976 and leading efforts to contain the first ever recorded Ebola epidemic that same year, Piot also did pioneering research into AIDS.
He has held key positions in the United Nations (UN) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) involving AIDS research and management. At present he is the Director, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
The endowment made by the IRDAI has helped organise lecture series with four Nobel laureates so far. The present one will be the fifth and the UoH has been organising it annually.