Associate Professor Raymond Lin

Research Interest

As a medical microbiologist working in a hospital and public health setting, my research is determined by the current problems which require further investigation. I work with basic science researchers on pathogens of particular clinical or epidemiological concern. We have investigated and evaluated new diagnostic devices and approaches, including the application of MALDI-TOF to routine diagnostic use, and we foresee that genomic tools will be incorporated into future applications. Antimicrobial resistance is an urgent problem with new developments arising every year. We have investigated MRSA, vancomycin-resistant enterococci, Clostridium difficile and carbapenem and other multi-drug resistant Gram-negative bacteria. These have implications for infection control, and laboratory studies are incorporated into different control and strategies. Influenza, enteroviruses and vector-borne viruses are among those which cause epidemics, and collaborations involve tracking the community spread and genetic changes in the viruses, as well as host response resulting in different grades of clinical severity. Tuberculosis is a continuing public health and clinical concern, and current collaborations include molecular epidemiology and from the application of whole genome information to the prediction of antimicrobial resistance.

Recent Publications

1. Rajkumar V, Chiang CS, Low JM, Cui L, Lin RT, Tee NW, Maiwald M, Chong CY, Thoon KC, Tan NW (2015) Risk Factors for Severe Adenovirus Infection in Children during an Outbreak in Singapore. Annals of the Academy of Medicine, Singapore, 44(2): 50-9.
2. Chiang D, Ng S, La MV, Jureen R, Lin RT, Teo JW (2014) Performance assessment of the BD MAX Cdiff assay in comparison to Xpert C. difficile assay in a setting with very low prevalence of toxigenic Clostridium difficile PCR ribotype 027. Anaerobe, 30: 156-8.
3. Ang LW, Lim C, Lee VJ, Ma S, Tiong WW, Ooi PL, Lin RT, James L, Cutter J (2014) Influenza-associated hospitalizations, Singapore, 2004–2008 and 2010–2012. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 20(10): 1652-60.
4. La MV, Jureen R, Lin RT, Teo JW (2014) Unusual detection of an Acinetobacter class D carbapenemase gene, blaOXA-23, in a clinical Escherichia coli isolate. Journal of Clinical Microbiology, 52(10): 3822-3.
5. Ginn AN, Wiklendt AM, Zong Z, Lin RT, Teo JW, Tambyah PA, Peterson LR, Kaul K, Partridge SR, Iredell JR (2014) Prediction of major antibiotic resistance in Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae in Singapore, USA and China using a limited set of gene targets. The International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents, 43(6): 563-5.
6. Teo J, Tan SY, Liu Y, Tay M, Ding Y, Li Y, Kjelleberg S, Givskov M, Lin RT, Yang L (2014) Comparative genomic analysis of malaria mosquito vector-associated novel pathogen Elizabethkingia anophelis. Genome Biology and Evolution, 6(5): 1158-65.
7. Ho HP, Zhao X, Pang J, Chen MI, Lee VJ, Ang LW, Lin RV, Gao CQ, Hsu LY, Cook AR (2014) Effectiveness of seasonal influenza vaccinations against laboratory-confirmed influenza-associated infections among Singapore military personnel in 2010-2013. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses, 8(5): 557-66.
8. Simonsen L, Spreeuwenberg P, Lustig R, Taylor RJ, Fleming DM, Kroneman M, Van Kerkhove MD, Mounts AW, Paget WJ; GLaMOR Collaborating Teams (2013) Global Mortality Estimates for the 2009 Influenza Pandemic from the GLaMOR Project: A Modeling Study. PLoS Medicine, 10(11): e1001558.
9. Chen MI, Cook AR, Lim WY, Lin R, Cui L, Barr IG, Kelso A, Chow VT, Leo YS, Hsu JP, Shaw R, Chew S, Yap JK, Phoon MC, Koh HW, Zheng H, Tan L, Lee VJ (2013) Factors influencing infection by pandemic influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 over three epidemic waves in Singapore. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses, 7(6): 1380-9.
10. Teo J, Cheng J, Jureen R, Lin R (2013) Clinical utility of RD1, RD9 and hsp65 based PCR assay for the identification of BCG in vaccinated children. BMC Research Notes, 6: 434.