Leo Lit Man Poon

Professor Poon, a virologist and public health scientist, received his PhD from the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at the University of Oxford. In 2001, he joined the University of Hong Kong (HKU) as a Research Assistant Professor and is now the Chair Professor in the School of Public Health, also serving as co-director of the HKU-Pasteur Research Pole and co-director of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Global Health Institute (HKJCGHI). Professor Poon's research primarily focuses on emerging and re-emerging viruses that threaten human health, including SARS-CoV, SARS-CoV-2, MERS-CoV, and zoonotic influenza viruses. Utilizing the "One Health" concept, he studies viruses at the animal-human interface and has developed molecular tests for various zoonotic viruses. Notably, he contributed to the discovery of the coronavirus responsible for SARS in 2003 and decoded its sequence, leading to the identification of coronaviruses in wildlife, including the first bat coronavirus. During the H1N1 pandemic in 2009, he identified the first reassortant of the pandemic virus in pigs. His work during the COVID-19 pandemic significantly advanced our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 and its public health implications, and he has a strong interest in vaccinology. Professor Poon has published over 300 peer-reviewed articles and is a founding member of the Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences. He was awarded a Senior Research Fellowship by the Croucher Foundation in 2017 and has ranked in the top 1% of the world's most-cited scientists since 2005, with over 45,000 citations and an H-index of 102. In 2023, he received the highly prestigious Louis Pasteur Bicentenary Prize from the Institut Pasteur for his contributions to combating emerging infectious diseases. Professor Poon serves as an expert for several international organizations, such as WHO, FAO, and WOAH.