Abstract:

Leprosy, an ancient disease still endemic in India, poses unique challenges for eradication due to its extraordinarily long incubation period, hidden transmission chains, and persistent social determinants. While biomedical advances such as multidrug therapy, new diagnostics, and vaccine trials have brought us closer to elimination, quantitative perspectives are increasingly essential to achieve India’s 2027 zero-transmission goal. This talk will explore how computational approaches can illuminate leprosy’s dynamics at multiple levels. At the population scale, spatial statistics and GIS-based cluster detection reveal hidden hotspots of transmission, guiding the strategic use of interventions such as single-dose rifampicin post-exposure prophylaxis. At the molecular and clinical scales,
bioinformatic analyses and diagnostic validation rely on statistical modelling to track drug resistance and improve early detection. Central to the discussion will be epidemiological models such as SEIR, adapted to reflect leprosy’s long latent phase and variable progression, which help explain why incidence declines slowly even under intensive control measures. By combining real-world epidemiological data with model simulations, we can examine “what-if” scenarios for interventions, from prophylaxis to vaccines. The aim is to demonstrate that leprosy control is an interdisciplinary collaborative project where
quantitative insights can directly accelerate disease elimination.

Reference:
Leprosy in India: Challenges, Advances, and the Path to Eradication.
https://doi.org/10.1093/trstmh/traf107 (Accepted Manuscript)

Speaker Bio:Dr. Prabuddha Gupta is an Assistant Professor at the Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Kolkata. His research interests include Biochemistry, Cell and Developmental Biology, Tuberculosis, Leprosy, and Epidemiology.

All are cordially invited to attend.