Anne Wyllie

Research Scientist

As compared to the gold standard nasopharyngeal swab, Wyllie’s work has identified saliva as a reliable sample type for the sensitive detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) in healthy adults and more recently, during the COVID-19 pandemic response, for SARS-CoV-2. Improved detection of the pneumococcus has unveiled hidden reservoirs in older adults which holds importance when new vaccination strategies for preventing pneumococcal disease are being considered. For COVID-19, sampling saliva can alleviate many of the bottlenecks encountered in the mass testing strategies required to control continuing outbreaks. In an effort to address many of these issues, Wyllie validated and optimized saliva for SARS-CoV-2 detection and developed SalivaDirect: a simple, scalable and importantly, cost-effective method to help alleviate SARS-CoV-2 testing demands. Wyllie is now propelling the use of saliva as a superior sample for high-quality, low-cost surveillance of respiratory pathogens, having validated the simplified PCR approach for influenza, RSV, mpox virus, among others. Wyllie’s SalivaDirect Initiative at the Yale School of Public Health remains devoted to providing public health guidance, advancing saliva diagnostics, and enabling the safe re-opening of communities worldwide.

Talks About
#nasopharyngeal

Preferred Locations
#NorthAmerica