HOME  SCIENCE INVENTIONS TEAM PUBLICATIONS JOIN NEWS CONTACT BLOG The Dimopoulos Group is an international team of scientists, that study mosquitoes wich transmit human pathogens such as malaria parasites and arboviruses, as part to their career development, postdoctoral training or PhD and master degree thesis research. George Dimopoulos, PhD MBA, Professor, Deputy Director of the Malaria Research Institute, Director of the Parasitology Core Facility. He has worked on mosquito biology since 1991, and pioneered in several areas and discoveries.       Yuemei Dong, PhD, Research Associate. Yuemei is pursuing pioneering work on mosquito immunity and mosquito-pathogen interactions using functional genomics and transgenic approaches. She is also developing microbe-based mosquitocidals.        Shengzhang Dong, PhD, Research Associate. Shengzhang is studying the Ae. aegypti siRNA pathway and its implication in controlling arbovirus infection using genome editing and transgenic methodologies. He is also studying Wolbachia-Plasmodium-Anopheles interactions.       Chinmay Tikhe, PhD, Research Associate. Chinmay is isolating and characterizing bacteriophages that infect mosquito-associated bacteria with the goal of exploring their suitability for developing mosquito control strategies.        Caire Barreto Vieira, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Caire is studying the permissiveness of transgenic Anopheles strains to different P. falciparum field isolates, and he is also exploring the use of a humanized mouse model to study P. falciparum transmission.         Victor Cardoso, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Victor is studying the implication of mosquito hemocytes in fighting infections with the human malaria parasite and arboviruses, using a combination of functional genomics and reverse genetic tools.        Gladys Guiterrez Bugallo, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Gladys studies mosquito-pathogen interactions using various genetic and infetion technologies. She is particularly interestd in the vertical (parent-to-offspring) transmission of arboviruses in Ae aegypti populations.       Mary Kefi, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Mary is studying the role of Anopheles gambiae Cryptochrome 1 as a Plasmodium antagonist using a combination of functional genomics techniques and infection assays, to evaluate its potential for transmission-blocking strategies.       Isaac Owusu-Frimpong, BSc, ScM program graduate student. Isaac is studying the implication of the prefoldin chaperonin complex, and associated factors, in regulating A. gambiae vector competence for the malaria parasite Plasmodium.       Madhavinadha Prasad Kona, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Prasad is developing Chromobacterium Csp_P-based adulticidal formulations with exceptional shelf-life and residual activity. He is also developing field-deployable molecular diagnostics for malria.        Sally Saab, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Sally is studying the regulation and effector mechanisms of the Anopheles and Aedes anti-pathogen melanization systems using functional genomics techniques and infection assays, to evaluate their potential for transmission-blocking strategies.       Mabel Tao, BSc, Research Technologist. Mabel is working on various projects involving Plasmodium and arbovirus infections in mosquitoes.Mabel is also helping with a variety of molecular and biochemical assays in the laboratory.       Vandana, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Vandana is developing Chromobacterium Csp_P-based larvicidal formulations with exceptional shelf-life and residual activity. She is also studying the bioogy of  Plasmodium gametocyte infectivity.       Jenny Wang, BSc, ScM program graduate student. Jenny is studying novel mosquitocidal bacteria for their suitability as microbial biopesticides. She is determining optimal cost-effective culturing conditions that yield high mosquitocidal activity, along with othyer properties.       Houhong Zhang, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Houhong is exploring the development of novel transgenesis strategies for malaria control that are based on the engineering of pathogen-inducible mosquito killing mechanisms.       Xinmi Zhang, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Xinmi is studying A. stephensi - Wolbachia interactions and how these influence Plasmodium infection and mosquito vector competence. Xinmi is also studing the influence of olfaction on the mosquito innate immune system.       Yuxuan Zhao, BSc, ScM program graduate student. Yuxuan is studying the Ae. aegypti siRNA pathway and its implication in controlling arbovirus infection using transgenic methodologies. She is particularly interested in the function of the siRNA pathway factor Vago.                 PARASITE CORE FACILITY Abhai Tripathi, PhD, Research Associate Professor, Parasitology Core Facility co-Director. Abhai is a malaria parasitologist and expert in Plasmodium culturing, malaria drug discovery, and the development of high throughput anti-Plasmodium screening assays.       Godfree Mlambo, PhD, Senior Research Associate, Parasitology Core Facility Manager. Godfree is a malaria parasitologist and expert on Plasmodium culturing, transgenesis, mosquito infections, and sporozoites production of both human and mouse malaria parasites.       Tassanee Thanakornsombut, PhD, Research Technician, Parasitology Core Facility. Tassanee works on Plasmodium culturing, transgenesis, mosquito rearing and infections, and sporozoites production of both human and mouse malaria parasites.                               ALUMNI Rohit Chebbi, BSc, Visiting Student. Rohit studied the implication of A. gambiae cryptochrome in regulating vector competence for P. falciparum using various molecular methods. He is now a postbac at the NIH/NIAID.       Cristiana Cuccurullo, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Cristiana was developing transgenic mosquitoes that either over-express Plasmodium-targeting nanobodies, or lack parasite host factors that protect it against melanization, to evaluate transmission-blocking strategies.       Mihra Tavadia, ScM, Research Technologist. Mihra was studying the Ae aegypti Vago gene, and how it may connect the RNAi pathway with other immune pathways using transgenesis. She is currently pursuing PhD graduate studies at the University of Montpellier.        Tanaya Sheth, BSc, ScM program graduate student. Tanaya investigated the implication of Wolbachia-induced Anopheles genes in anti-Plasmodium defenses. She is now a research technician at Columbia University, NY.        Mahdiyeh Bigham, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Mahdiyeh was developing PCR-based molecular diagnostic assays for Anopheles mosquito insecticide resistance surveillance. She is She is now a Staff Scientist at Washington University, St. Louis.       Johnny Nakhleh, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Johnny was studying the Anopheles complement-like system and C-type lectin 4 that regulate lysis and  melanization of Plasmodium, and he exploring the potential of these defense systems to develop malaria resistant mosquitoes.       Alexandros Belavilas, BSc, Fulbright Scholar/Visiting Fellow. Alexandros studied the implication of mosquito long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) in regulating pathogen infection and reproduction. He completed PhD graduate training at the University of Thessaly, Greece.         Amanda Maldonado, BSc, Technician. Amanda trained on various laboratory techniques in the areas of molecular entomology and biology. She collaborated on a project aiming at the development of bacteria-based mosquitocidals.       Maria Luisa Simoes, PhD, Research Associate. Maria Luisa studied the c-type lectins that regulate melanization of Plasmodium. She is an Assistant Professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK.       Cecilia Springer Engdahl, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Cecilia is continuing her studies on the Chromobacterium mosquitocidal and other microbe-derive biopesticide candidates at Umea University, Sweden as part of her fellowship.         Anastasia Accoti, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Anastasia discovered and characterized novel entomopathogenic fungi that can be developed into mosquito control tools, and has return to Italy to continue her studies on vector biology.        Eric Caragata, PhD, Research Associate. Eric studied Chromobacterium mosquitocidal activity towards developing field-compatible formulations for mosquito control. He is an Assistant Professor at the University of Florida, Department of Entomology and Nematology.       Natalie Rutkowski, BSc, Post-Bac student. Natalie developed a field-deployable molecular diagnostic platform for detection of arboviruses in mosquitoes. She is pursuing a PhD at the Johns Hopkins School or Medicine.       Sayali Mulay, ScM, Biotechnology ScM program graduate student. Sayali developed liquid culture fermentation methods for large scale production of Chromobacterium Csp_P. She is pursuing a PhD at the University of Tennessee.       Hannah MacLeod, BSc, pre-doctoral graduate student. Hannah studied the interactions between Culex mosquitoes and Zika virus. She is pursuing postdoctoral training at the USDA-ARS / Cornell University.         Aliyah Silver, BSc, pre-doctoral graduate student. Aliyah was working on developing RNAi pathway enhanced transgenic Aedes with a special focus on the salivary gland. The long-term goal of this project is to assess the utility of RNA pathway engineering for arbovirus control.       Abigail Conte, summer intern.  Abby worked with Hannah on the characterization of the  Culex-Zika virus interactions, with the goal of understanding the mechanism of refractoriness and why Culex mosquitoes are non-vectors for Zika virus.         Tiffany Pan, BSc, ScM program graduate student. Ty worked on the isolation and characterization of bacteriophages from the mosquito microbiota. She also investigated whether bacteriophages could be used to modulate the microbiota of the larval breeding water.       Raul Saraiva, MS, pre-doctoral graduate student. Raul characterized bacteria-produced anti-Plasmodium and anti-dengue virus factors, and studied the implication of Anopheles immune pathways in the defense against P. vivax infection.         Nahid Borhani Dizaji, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Nahid studied the fitness cost/gain of immune-transgenesis, with a special focus on how recombinant Rel2 over-expression may influence the microbiota of reproductive organs, and how this may affect mating behavior.       Purnima Ravisankar, BSc, ScM program graduate student. Purnima studied bacteria-produced antimicrobial factors, and the implication of candidate Plasmodium host factors in regulating infection in A. gambiae.        Yesseinia Anglero-Rodriguez, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Yesseinia studied Aedes - dengue virus interactions with an emphasis on virus host factors, and how the mosquito mycobiome can influence susceptibility to virus infection. She also studied mosquito immune activator compounds.       Sarah Short, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Sarah studied the Aedes microbiota with a focus on mosquito genes/systems that can influence the  microbial load of the intestine. She is an Assistant Professor at Ohio State University.       Jenny Carlson, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Jenny studied the Anopheles microbiota and how microbial exposure of larval stages may influence immune competence of adults. She is also studied the mosquitocidal activity of Chromobacterium Csp_P.       Seokyoung Kang, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Seokyoung studied mosquito - pathogen interactions with an emphasis on host factors that can be used to attenuate pathogen infection using small molecule inhibitors or dsRNAs. He also studied a novel Plasmodium host factor.       Celia Demby, BSc, pre-doctoral graduate student. Celia characterized the JAK-STAT pathway regulated dengue virus restriction factors to elucidate mosquito antiviral defenses. She was also studying the influence of mosquito-associated fungi on the susceptibility to the dengue virus.       Natapong Jupatanakul (Tui), MS, pre-doctoral graduate student. Tui elucidated the role of novel immune factors in anti-dengue virus response. He studied the use of transgenesis to develop dengue virus resistant mosquitoes. He is a researcher in Thailand.       Jingru Fang (Katie), BSc, ScM program graduate student. Katie used biochemical and molecular methods to define the nature of bacteria-produced metabolites that have anti-pathogen activity. She pursued her PhD graduate training at Scripps.       Sarah Van Tol, BSc, ScM program graduate student. Sarah is investigated whether malaria and dengue transmission-blocking bacteria of the mosquito intestine can be vertically and transstadially transmitted. She pursued her PhD graduate training at UTMB.       Benjarat Phatta (Ja), BSc. Ja is a graduate (PhD) student at Chiangmai University, and was studying the Aedes aegypti microbiota and how it may influence vector competence for dengue. She tested several bacterial isolates for influence on dengue infection in cells and mosquitoes.       Gabriela Bassi Maia, Visiting Fellow.  Gabriela was a Biomedical Sciences student from Sao Camilo University Center in Sao Paulo, and trained on various aspects of molecular entomology through the  Brazilian Scientific Mobility Program.   Ligia Correia Lima de Souza, Visiting Fellow.  Ligia was a medical student from the Federal University of Bahia, and trained on various aspects of molecular biology and entomology through the Brazilian Scientific Mobility Program.       Benjamin Blumberg, PhD, PhD, Pre-doctoral graduate student. Ben characterized genes involved in bacteria-independent anti-Plasmodium defenses. He also studied Penicillium fungi that rendered the mosquito more susceptible to infection. He pursued PD training at JHSPH.       Andrew Pike, PhD, PhD, pre-doctoral graduate student. Pike characterized the A. stephensi IMD pathway-regulated transcriptome and proteome, and studied the fitness cost/gain of immune-transgenesis. He pursued PD trainingat the University of Maryland.       Octavio Augusto Talyuli da Cunha, BSc, Visiting Fellow. Octavio trained in various molecular techniques and infection assays. He studied the influence of a yeast on mosquito resistance to Plasmodium. He pursued PhD graduate training at the Fed Uni Rio De Janeiro.       Nathan Dennison, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Nathan performed pioneering studies of Anopheles micro-RNA responses to Plasmodium infection, and linked micro-RNAs with the regulation of anti-Plasmodium defense. He pursued training at Imperial College London.       Chontida Tangsongcharoen (Koi), BSc, Visiting Fellow. Koi studied bacteria-produced larvicidal factors that specifically inhibit Culex larvae. She studied the mosquito transcriptome responses to exposure to these factors, to understand the mechanism of action.       Simone Sandiford, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Simone identified several interacting protein partners of mosquito immune pattern recognition receptors using a Y2H screen. She also studied the role of a mosquito actin as an extracellular immune factor.       Yang Chen, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Yang worked on novel mosquito immune-regulators and developed transgenic Anopheles mosquitoes that over-express PGRP-LC and Caspar-dsRNA, resulting in Plasmodium resistance. Hepursued traing in programming.       George (Ned) Barringer, ScM program graduate student. Ned studied a mosquito gut-associated yeast that influences the mosquito's susceptibility to Plasmodium infection. The mechanism of parasite inhibition is still unknown and subject to further studies.         Alicia Majeau, ScM program graduate student. Alicia screened and identified bacteria that could influence mosquito attractiveness, presumably through olfactory cues. Such bacteria could be used to enhance mosquito attraction to bacteria-spiked sugar baits.       Alicia Shields, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Alicia studied the implication of dengue virus host factors in regulating susceptibility to the virus. She also studied the influence of a Penicillium fungus on mosquito susceptibility to dengue virus infection.       Omar BenMarzouk, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Omar studied mosquito microbiota and initiated a project that discovered Anopheles micro-RNAs that were implicated in regulating mosquito susceptibility to Plasmodium. He pursued PD training in Sevilla.       Ana Bahia, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Ana identified a Serratia bacterium that exerts both entomopathogenic and anti-Plasmodium activities. She also collaborated on several other projects. She is an Assistant Professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.       Alekhya Valdahami, ScM program graduate student. Alekhya studied the implication of several serine proteases and serpins in A. stephensi immunity to P. falciparum and bacterial infection. She also studied the mosquito IMD pathway-regulated transcriptome.       April Clayton, PhD, pre-doctoral graduate student. April characterized the Anopheles Caudal gene, and showed that it was implicated in regulating susceptibility to P. falciparum infection and the intestinal microbiota. She pursued PD training at the NIH.       Ramesh Chandra, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Ramesh developed a mosquito cell line with an immune-inducible luciferase marker. He also identified AgDSCAM splicing factors that were regulated by the immune system. He pursued PD training at the University of Maryland.       Shuzhen Sim, PhD, pre-doctoral graduate student. Shuzhen showed that dengue virus infection suppresses mosquito immunity and influences host seeking behavior. She also studied field population variations in vector competence. She pursued PD training at the Genome Institute of Singapore.       Jose Luis Ramirez, PhD, pre-doctoral graduate student. Jose Luis performed the first field-based Aedes microbiota studies and discovered a Chromobacterium that mediate entomopathogenic and anti-pathogen activities. He is a PI at the USDA.       Chris Cirimotich, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Chris performed pioneering work that for the first time showed that a bacterium can directly inhibit Plasmodium development in the mosquito gut. He is an Intelligence Analyst at Battelle.       Jayme Souza-Neto, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Jayme established the implication of the Aedes aegypti JAK-STAT pathway in anti-dengue defense, and also collaborated on a variety of other projects. He is an Asistant Professor at Sao Paulo State University.       Sushismita Das, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Smita studied the imfluence of photic stimulation on the mosquito circadian rhythm and feeding behavior, and participated in the generation of transgenic mosquitoes. She is an Assistant professor at the Taradevi Jain College.       Fabio Manfredini, PhD, Visiting Fellow. Fabio studied the mosquito microbiota, looking at variations in microbial load and species composition between individuals, and generations of, mosquitoes. He pursued PhD graduate training at the University of Siena.       Zhiyong Xi, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Zhiyong introduced the dengue virus infection model to Dimopoulos Group and performed pioneering work on mosquito immune pathway implication in anti-dengue defense. He is a Professor at the Michigan State University.       Lindsey Garver, PhD, pre-doctoral graduate student. Lindsey performed pioneering work on the IMD pathway, showing that is was implicated in the defense against P. falciparum infection. She pursued PD training at the NIH.       Emma Warr, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Emma characterized the Anopheles midgut transcriptome, studied the GNBP gene family and the implication of anti-Plasmodium immune factors in melanization. She continued as a Research Assistant at Keele University.       Ruth Aguilar, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Ruth performed field studies of mosquito immunity in Cameroon. She also studied the selective pressure of Plasmodium infection on the Anopheles transcriptome. She is a Staff Scientist at the Barcelona Center for International Health Research.       Harry Taylor, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Harry initiated the characterization of the Anopheles Down Syndrome Cell Adhesion Molecule (AgDSCAM) hypervariable pattern recognition receptor. He is a Research Assistant Professor at Northwestern University.       Makeda Robinson, MD, undergraduate trainee. Makeda was involved in a variety of projects that focused on molecular aspects of the Anopheles innate immune system. She pursued an MD.       Antonio Mendes, PhD, Visiting Fellow. Antonio's project focused on the the Anopheles gambiae salivary gland transcriptome, using microarray-based data. He pursued a PhD at Imperial College London.       Vassiliki Mahairaki, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Vassiliki studied the Plasmodium parasite's interaction with the mosquito midgut. She continued with a postdoctoral training at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.             Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunoogy Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute Bloomberg School of Public Health Johns Hopkins University © 2023  |  DIMOPOULOS GROUP  |  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED DESIGNED BY GEORGE DIMOPOULOS