So we have this database for wildlife disease surveillance, and we made a data standard, and an R and Python package to help you clean your data, and two years in we just still cannot get first adopters, so here’s my new bit: I will personally Venmo you $20 of my personal money to share a dataset
I'm really honored to announce that I've been selected as the Marilyn Anderson Fellow at the La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science. This 4-year fellowship converts to a continuing position in teaching & research (Australian equivalent to American tenure).
www.latrobe.edu.au/news/announc...
Millicent Opoku stands at a lectern. Projected on the screen behind her is a photo of a blackfly.
Neha Sirwani stands at a lectern. Projected on the screen next to her is a slide with the text "Exploring the genomes of African black fly Simulium spp." with a picture of a blackfly.
Fun times at the Australian Society for Parasitology Annual Congress showcasing the amazing (and gross) biodiversity of parasites!
Successful talks on genomics of blackflies that transmit River blindness by @nehassirwani.bsky.social @sindew.bsky.social @millicentopoku.bsky.social
@anusha-kode.bsky.social @nehassirwani.bsky.social @sindew.bsky.social
Here's the Hedtke Lab for 2025!
Shannon Hedtke
Warwick Grant
Sindew Feleke
Millicent Opoku
Anusha Kode
Neha Sirwani
Mayfield, Sartorius, et al. 2025
When you find someone that has LF larvae in their blood ("microfilariaemia") then their household members are more likely to test positive for disease exposure.
Targeting households may enhance efficacy of annual treatments.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
We've got some papers already in 2025...
Watch this space as we will have some really cool stuff come out this year!
Three people stand on the La Trobe University grounds: Millicent Opoku (PhD student from Ghana), Sindew Feleke (PhD student from Ethiopia), and Shannon Hedtke (lab head, from US)
With Alt text!!
Congrats to Sindew Feleke @sindew.bsky.social on his pre-submission PhD seminar!
Sindew comes to La Trobe via the Ethiopian Public Health Ministry. His work on river blindness and the blackflies that transmit it will be a real asset towards elimation.
(Pictured w/Millicent Opoku)
Left: Virgin Gnathostoma - "eggs won't even embryonate without touching water", "has to infect different host animal throughout life0cycle", "first host it infects is a tiny zooplankton crustacean", "has to infect at least two different host animal before it's ready to infect the final host", "ends up getting lost if it gets eaten by an animal different from the usual definitive host". Right: Chad Trichinella - "use the same host animal as both the definitive AND the intermediate host", "act as an intracellular parasite even though it is a multicellular animal", "can continue life cyycle in any carnivorous or omnivorous mammal", "reprogram skeletal muscle cells into nurse cells for its own purpose", "redirect blood vessel growth to nurse cell to turn it into a home and a sanctuary".
I made this NemaMeme to explain parasitic nematode life cycles.
#Invertebrate #Parasitology 🧪
Newly published in Genetics:
academic.oup.com/genetics/adv...
We ask what gene flow & introgression do to gene coexpression networks. The answer is: a lot.
Mayfield et al. 2025
Lymphatic filariasis causes chronic physical disability and social ostracization.
The disease persists despite drug distribution. Ongoing infections are a likely cause: we report 2 doses of 3 drugs isn't sufficient for some in Samoa.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Mayfield et al. 2025
Lymphatic filariasis causes chronic physical disability and social ostracization.
The disease persists despite drug distribution. Ongoing infections are a likely cause: we report 2 doses of 3 drugs isn't sufficient for some in Samoa.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
We’re hiring again! Our new Leader Systematic Botany role at Botanic Gardens of Sydney is an exciting opportunity to join a vibrant, diverse, and inclusive team of 15 scientists working on systematics, phylogenomics, and macroevolution of the Australian flora.
iworkfor.nsw.gov.au/job/leader-s...
We've been getting really interesting responses to our research survey on attitudes to parasite conservation & have extended the deadline to 14th March to boost sample size & increase representation. 🌍🧪🪱🦠.
Survey form: forms.office.com/e/KBPhk6fgz3
Info sheet:
tinyurl.com/yxdbb7hs
Thanks! In the meantime, you can see the preprint that's 98% identical to the eventual final copy:
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Awesome; thanks!
This is... really bad. Elsevier is a giant, with many top journals, and researchers *must publish* or fail to get jobs, grants, etc.
Publishing is a massively profitable industry, because academics do most of the work. Yet publishers are shamefully cutting costs while increasing burdens on us!
It's really cool work!
I just think of what could be done with all that money...
Nematodes and phylogenetics to ring in the new year!
It looks like this paper is not open access 😞
Dr Zhang summarizes the results in the thread below:
Chronic parasite infections are found in wealthy nations like the US and Australia, contributing to inequity. These parasite infections are treatable and preventable! Sanitation infrastructure should be built for all.
Map of Samoa showing the two islands. Pie graphs show where communities tested positive or negative using Ag (antigen) tests and using Mf tests (when the larval form, microfilariae, are detected on microscope slides). 8 locations are negative for both, 14 are positive for both, 14 are positive for only antigen, and none are only microfilaria positive.
Mayfield et al. 2024
Lymphatic filariasis is a parasite disease that is challenging the islands of the South Pacific. This is a baseline for future studies, combining evidence from different methods for testing disease after people received triple-drug therapy.
doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed9120311
One last paper from our team in 2024!
Mayfield et al. present evidence that providing only one round of triple-drug treatment to people in communities in Samoa was not enough to interrupt disease transmission.
url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/rM_eCE8kD9...
#Australians on bluesky...callout for #citizenscience participants willing to #count #christmasbeetles #science @sydneyuni.bsky.social www.sydney.edu.au/science/our-...
Hey All, plz repost, and share with grads, post-docs and disease folks! We are hiring a post-doc to work on mechanisms of immune responses of frog hosts to Bd infections. Deadline is February 1, 2025. Details for the position can be found at the link below. 🐸🐸🐸
zamudiolab.org/2024/12/17/p...
Bat bug ectoparasites cluster on the leading edge of the wing of a Parastrellus hesperus bat being held by a researcher.
Do you work in wildlife health management in conservation? We are seeking participants for an academic research study of practitioner/researcher attitudes to parasite conservation. Participation is open to all roles and experience levels. DM me for more info. Please repost. 🧪🌍🪱🪰🦟 #biodiversity
Selfie photo of five people dressed casually and smiling
We need an "official" lab photo, but until then:
Shannon Hedtke
Emily Hendrickson (now in the PhD program at USD)
Sindew Feleke @sindew.bsky.social
Anusha Kode
Millicent Opoku
Not pictured: Neha Sirwani @nehassirwani.bsky.social
Warwick Grant
I am recruiting PhD students for 2025.
