Livia Victoria Patrono is a veterinarian working in the field of zoonotic infectious diseases with a focus on understanding pathogen transmission at the human-wildlife interface in sub-Saharan Africa, developing laboratory techniques for pathogen genomics in non-invasive samples, and contributing to rapid outbreak responses. 

During her doctoral work, focused on studying the host range and tropism of animal influenza A viruses, she participated in diagnostic and research activities of the Italian WOAH/FAO Reference Centre for zoonotic diseases in Padova, Italy. This experience introduced her to a variety of laboratory procedures, ranging from classical virology to molecular biology and ex-vivo experimental models, and to disease surveillance programs in animal and human populations. 

To acquire field experience and widen her skillset to study disease epidemiology, in 2016 she joined the Project Group “Epidemiology of Highly Pathogenic Microorganisms” at the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin supported through an Alexander von Humboldt Postdoctoral Fellowship. She specialized in developing laboratory techniques to retrieve full genomes of respiratory pathogens and monkeypox virus from non-invasive samples collected from wildlife (e.g., feces and fruit wedges), and spent time in Côte d’Ivoire, Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic to support wildlife health monitoring activities and on-site laboratory testing for early outbreak investigations. 

In 2021 she joined the Department of Ecology and Emergence of Zoonotic Diseases at the Helmholtz Institute for One Health in Greifswald, with a permanent position of Senior Scientist. Her research investigates the bidirectional transmission of zoonotic pathogens at distinct human-animal interfaces. Core research areas include the ecology of monkeypox virus in wildlife and the evolving epidemiology of mpox in humans, as well as the transmission of human respiratory viruses and bacteria to wild great apes. Livia currently conducts and supervises field work in four African countries (Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon), including the INFORBIO project. She collaborates with national partners to sample wildlife and human populations to understand pathogen transmission dynamics. The overarching goal of this research is to identify the mechanisms that facilitate zoonotic spillover, and to translate these insights into effective prevention measures. 

Alongside research activities, since 2015 Livia has been an active member of the Global Outbreak and Alert Response Network (GOARN) of the WHO, with whom she deployed to Sierra Leone and Guinea as laboratory expert for the Ebola Response Teams (2013-2016 Ebola epidemic in West Africa), and to the refugee camp of Kara Tepe in Greece during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Selected publications

Google Scholar

Transmission of MPXV from fire-footed rope squirrels to sooty mangabeys. (2026) Riutord-Fe C*, Schlotterbeck J*, Lagostina L, Kouadio L, Herridge HR, Jochum MJS, Noma NY, López-Morales A, Hoffmann D, Calvelage S, Kühl H, Mielke A, Crockford C, Samuni L, Wittig RM, Beer M, Gonedelé-Bi S, Gogarten JF, Calvignac-Spencer S*, Düx A*, PatronoLV*, Leendertz FH*. Nature, February 11 2026. DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-10086-y

Genomic epidemiology of clade Ia monkeypox viruses circulating in the Central African Republic in 2022-24: a retrospective cross-sectional study. (2025) Malaka CN*, Patrono LV*, Tombolomako TB, Farra E, Sibiro O, Garba-Ouangolé S, Selekon B, Lemon CG, Mbrenga F, Souma A, Lorke J, Düx A, Semdouto JH, Singa Niatou FS, Kandou JK, Raphaël M, Moyen JM, Kalthan E, Sako E, Ngbeadego-Soukoudoupou A, Kpahina OA, Lemey P, O’Toole A, Rambaut A, Somse P, Calvignac-Spencer S*, Nakoune E*, Leendertz FH*, Boum II Y*. The Lancet Microbe 6 (10) 101173. DOI: 10.1016/j.lanmic.2025.101173

Archival influenza virus genomes from Europe reveal genomic variability during the 1918 pandemic. (2022) Patrono LV*, Vrancken B*, Budt M*, Düx A, Lequime S, Boral S, Gilbert MTP, Gogarten JF, Hoffmann L, Horst D, Merkel K, Morens D, Prepoint B, Schlotterbeck S, Schuenemann VJ, Suchard MA, Taubenberger JK, Tenkhoff L, Urban C, Widulin N, Winter E, Worobey M, Leendertz FH, Schnalke T, Wolff T, Lemey P, Calvignac-Spencer S. Nature Communications 13, 2314. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29614-9

Non-invasive genomics of respiratory pathogens infecting wild great apes using hybridisation capture. (2022) Patrono LV, Röthemeier C, Kouadio L, Couacy-Hymann E, Wittig RM, Calvignac-Spencer S, Leendertz FH. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses 16:858–861. Doi: 10.1111/irv.12984

Monkeypox virus emergence in wild chimpanzees reveals distinct clinical outcomes and viral diversity. (2020) Patrono LV*, Pléh K*, Samuni L, Roethemeier C, Sachse A, Muschter S, Nitsche A, Wittig RM, Calvignac-Spencer S, Leendertz F. Nature Microbiology 5(7), 955–965. DOI: 10.1038/s41564-020-0706-0

Absence of adaptive evolution is the main barrier against influenza emergence in horses in Asia despite frequent virus interspecies transmission from wild birds. (2019) Zhu H*, Damdinjav B*, Gonzalez G*, Patrono LV*, Ramirez-Mendoza H, Amat JAR, Crispell J, Parr YA, Hammond TA, Shiilegdamba E, Leung YHC, Peiris M, Marshall JF, Hughes J, Gilbert M, Murcia PR. PLoS Pathogens 15(2): DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1007531

Human coronavirus OC43 outbreak in wild chimpanzees, Côte d´Ivoire, 2016. (2018) Patrono LV, Samuni L, Corman VM, Nourifar L, Röthemeier C, Wittig RM, Drosten C, Calvignac-Spencer S, Leendertz FH. Emerging Microbes and Infections, 7(1):118. DOI: 10.1038/s41426-018-0121-2.