FIU experts are available to discuss malaria

July 11, 2023 at 9:00am

FIU experts are available to discuss malaria related topics including prevention and treatment methods, vaccine development and the challenges of drug resistance.

The full list of experts that will be continuously updated can be found below.

Members of FIU's communications team are available to assist members of the media in contacting experts:

Elizabeth Ferrer-Alfonso, 305-348-6944, eferrera@fiu.edu
Contact the Office of Media Relations.

Rajiv Chowdhury
Chair and Professor, Department of Global Health
Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work
Chowdhury can provide guidance on how to prevent emerging new infections and chronic diseases. Chowdhury is an educator and physician trained in global health epidemiology and the chair of the Department of Global Health at the Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work at Florida International University. Chowdhury has received academic training and has experience in global health epidemiology, global public health and implementation science. He holds doctoral and master's degrees in public health and epidemiology, respectively, from the University of Cambridge, where he had the titles of Commonwealth Scholar and Gates Cambridge Scholar. His work has received media attention, appearing in outlets like The New York Times, CNN and BBC. Chowdhury can speak to the potential linkage between the changing environment and the emerging risk of mosquito-borne diseases.
Office: 305-348-5265
Email:rajiv.chowdhury@fiu.edu
Click here to read Chowdhury's article in The Conversation.
Click here to read Chowdhury's article in CNBC.

Matthew DeGennaro
Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
College of Arts, Sciences & Education
Biomolecular Sciences Institute
A neurogeneticist with 20 years of experience in biomedical research, DeGennaro uses molecular genetics to address biological questions. He is known for creating the first mutant mosquito. He uses his genetic approach to study mosquito behavior. His work in the Vosshall lab at The Rockefeller University revealed how human hosts are chosen and how mosquitos are repelled by DEET. Today, he runs the Laboratory of Mosquito Genetics and Behavior at FIU. Despite the danger that mosquito host-seeking behavior poses to human health, little progress has been made in understanding its genetic basis. Understanding the odors that attract mosquitoes and the receptors required to sense these odors will allow for new approaches to manipulate mosquito behavior. He is available to discuss mosquitos, their behavior and current scientific approaches to mitigate mosquito-borne illnesses.
Office: 305-348-2201
Email: mdegenna@fiu.edu

Carlos Espinal

Director
Global Health Consortium
Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work
Espinal is the director of the Global Health Consortium at the Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work at Florida International University. He earned his degree in medicine at the University of Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia, and continued his academic career as a fellow at both the New York University School of Medicine and the University of New Mexico School Of Medicine, where he specialized in tropical geographical diseases, epidemiology, and malaria vaccine development. He is jury chair and member for Malaria Champions of the Americas, a global campaign by the Pan-American Health Organization PAHO/WHO. View more information on Dr. Espinal. Espinal can speak to what we know about malaria and how to keep people safe amid the outbreaks in the U.S.
Email: caespina@fiu.edu

Aileen Marty
Professor, Department of Translational Medicine
Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine
College of Arts, Sciences & Education
Marty works with the World Health Organization at the Health-Security Interphase and has responded to disease outbreaks worldwide including Ebola, Zika, and most recently COVID-19 serving as an advisor for the South Florida community. Marty has extensive experience in infectious disease, public health, outbreak response, & mass gatherings. Marty is co-editor-in-chief of One Health, the official journal of the International Federation for Tropical Medicine. Marty can speak on how the infection enters and affects the body, symptoms of infection and how to minimize exposure. Marty is also available for interviews in Spanish.
Office: 305-348-0377
Email: amarty@fiu.edu