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One of the worlds leading experts on mysterious killer diseases like the SARS coronavirus, the West Nile virus and the colony collapse disorder affecting bees is coming to Hamilton to give a presentation about his profession and his work as a consultant on the Hollywood film Contagion.

Dr. W. Ian Lipkin, an international microbe hunter and a Columbia University research professor, will give a community presentation called Bad Bugs on the Big Screen on Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. at the Hamilton Performing Arts Center, 327 Fairgrounds Road.

The talk is free and open to the public as part of a community outreach series sponsored by Rocky Mountain Laboratories.

Lipkin has helped solve some of the worlds most urgent infectious disease mysteries for decades, and he has worked on projects from West Nile virus in New York to the Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus in Saudi Arabia. He served as a scientific adviser for director Steven Soderberghs film Contagion and trained actress Kate Winslet to play the role of scientist.

The film has been described as one of the most accurate depictions of how an emerging viral disease can rapidly affect health care systems, economies and social behavior, according to RML spokesman Ken Pekoc.

Lipkin impressed upon the filmmakers two important themes: Research programs are vital and scientists have to be prepared for the unexpected.

Contagion provided a rare opportunity for a scientist to take a lifetime of research experiences to a global audience and say, This is what we do, and this is why its important, Dr. Lipkin said in a statement.

RML scientists scientists collaborate with Lipkins research group on various projects, Pekoc said. For example, the researchers are currently sharing expertise to better understand the MERS coronavirus, which was first described in two patients in September 2012. According to the World Health Organization, MERS now has caused disease in 149 people and killed 63.

Ian is probably the only virologist in the world capable of bridging the cutting edge of science to the cutting room floor of Hollywood, said Marshall Bloom, M.D., RML associate director for science. His lecture will not only describe his work, but will chronicle the way infectious disease research has been portrayed on the silver screen. This will be not only informative, but very engaging.

RML is part of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, a component of the National Institutes of Health. For more information, visit http://www.niaid.nih.gov.

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Disease expert to speak in Hamilton