Disease Ecology

The lab approaches fundamental questions of how potential invertebrate vectors interact with known pathogens and suspected symbionts that mediate disease spread and pathogen transmission. We also conduct field surveys and experiments that test how changing environmental conditions mediate the interactions of vectors, hosts, their microbial communities and habitat templates influence disease emergence and outbreaks.  Recent work is investigating how habitat microbial communities affect the behavior and life history of mosquitoes and if mosquito microbiomes vary with  species and populations over  space and time.