Dr. Naveen Vaidya (San Diego State University)
Abstract: The use of animal models is quite common in studying human viruses. Specifically, the pre-clinical development of antiviral agents, such as antiretroviral therapy and vaccines, involves experimental trials in animals. In this talk, I will present mathematical models driven by animal data to describe the within-host dynamics of several Human virus infections (SARS-CoV-2, HIV, Hepatitis B). Using the developed models, I will demonstrate how data sets from controlled animal experiments can be precious to get insight into viral and immune response dynamics. We will further extend the models to evaluate antiviral agents and grasp critical epidemiological characteristics of these viral diseases.
Biography: Dr. Naveen K. Vaidya is an Associate Professor of Mathematics at San Diego State University (SDSU). Before joining SDSU, he had obtained experience in an assistant professorship at the University of Missouri – Kansas City and postdoctoral research at Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico, and Western University, Canada. He received PhD in Applied Mathematics and M.Sc. in Industrial and Applied Mathematics from York University, Canada. He has also received M.Sc., B.Sc., and B.Ed. Degrees from Tribhuvan University, Nepal. Dr. Vaidya’s research interests include applied mathematics, with specific areas of interest in mathematical biology (viral dynamics and immune systems, epidemiology, and ecology), mathematical and computational modeling, differential equations, dynamical systems, optimal control, biostatistics, and machine learning. His primary current focus lies in developing models of infectious diseases, pathogen evolution, and their controls. He has established an externally funded research program in SDSU-DiMoLab (Disease Modeling Lab) at San Diego State University.