| This thesis consists of four chapters. The first chapter briefly familiarizes the reader with the systematic review methodology and describes possible approaches to incorporating the key systematic review concepts into reviews of laboratory-based microbial research. In this regard, Chapter 1 is an introduction to the conduct of reviews, their application in other disciplines and the possible application of the systematic review methodology to microbial sciences. Chapter 2 is an empirical application of the systematic review methodology to microbial sciences using persistence of influenza virus as an example. The review in Chapter 2 identified significant gaps in research design and poor reporting, therefore Chapter 3 is an example of one of the sequelae to the systematic review methodology. Chapter 3 is a publication about the approaches used to study the topic areas and potential recommendations for changes that may improve applicability. Finally, Chapter 4 concludes the thesis, and discusses the important differences, and unique challenges, between the current well-developed systematic review methodology for interventions and the reality of research synthesis in microbial sciences. |
