Parasitology is an important specialist journal covering the latest advances in the subject. It publishes original research and review papers on all aspects of parasitology and host-parasite relationships, including the latest discoveries in parasite biochemistry, molecular biology and genetics, ecology and epidemiology in the context of the biological, medical and veterinary sciences.
John is a molecular parasitologist, whose research interests include parasitic protozoa of medical and veterinary importance. His current research areas are focussed on reverse vaccinology, epidemiology and molecular diagnostics. These studies involve applying “omics” technologies and bioinformatics to the study of Neospora caninum and neosporosis, human gastrointestinal infections by Dientamoeba, Giardia and Cryptosporidium species, as well as malaria and toxoplasmosis.
Professor Hemphill's research is in the field novel preventive and therapeutic measures against parasitic diseases caused by protozoans and helminths. Currently this includes the search for vaccines and drugs, and characterization of respective targets, for the treatment of infections by apicomplexan parasites such as Neospora, Toxoplasma, Besnoitia and others. He is also been working on the cestode Echinococcus multilocularis, mainly on several aspects of host-parasite interactions, in vitro culture techniques and novel treatment options.
Professor Holland is a parasitologist with interests in the epidemiology and control of parasites with a particular emphasis upon the soil-transmitted helminths. She is also working on the development of a laboratory model for susceptibility to Ascaris. More recently, her laboratory is focused upon aspects of ecological parasitology including the role of parasites in host invasion.
Professor Stothard is a parasitologist with interests in molecular epidemiology, medical helminthology and freshwater malacology. Russ has worked with several national control programmes in Africa to control schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis. He regularly provides advice to the World Health Organisation on deworming.
Dr Aroian is a Parasitologist with a strong background in gastrointestinal nematodes of humans and livestock, in biological control, and in using Caenorhabditis elegans as a model for parasitic nematodes. His laboratory at UMASS Medical School is developing new anthelmintic therapies for hookworms, Ascarids, whipworms, and ruminant parasites based on natural products as well as traditional drug screening and studies anthelmintic mechanism of action.
Professor Blake’s interests include vaccine development, population genetics and host-pathogen-microbiome interactions, utilising next generation sequencing and reverse genetics technologies.
Dr Britton is a molecular parasitologist with interests in helminth development, gene regulation and vaccine design. Her research focuses on gastrointestinal nematodes infecting animals and humans and uses C. elegans as model system to determine nematode gene function.
Dr Carter's research has focused on improving delivery of drugs given by different administration routes, mechanisms responsible for resistance to drug treatment, vaccine development, and assessment of host immune responses. She has used leishmaniasis as a model in many of her studies.
Dr Couper is a Parasite Immunologist with a background in studying the immune response to Toxoplasma gondii and malaria. His group’s current focus is studying the pathogenesis and pathology of cerebral malaria. His group also maintains an interest in studying the pathways that control the development and regulation of anti-parasite T cell responses during Plasmodium infection.
Work in Dr Denny's laboratory is focused on furthering the understanding of the role of lipid biosynthesis and membrane trafficking in the interaction of host cells with apicomplexan and kinetoplastid protozoan pathogens, with a view to elucidating specific activities amenable to therapeutic intervention. These interests have enabled him to undertake a key role in the Durham-led MRC GCRF Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases, a community of researchers from the UK, South America and south Asia focused on validating new drug targets for leishmaniasis and Chagas disease.
Dr Dunn is an ecologist with strong interests in the community ecology of host-parasite interactions, and parasite transmission in avian systems. She is particularly interested in the sub-clinical impacts of parasitic infection, vector transmission of avian haemoparasites, and co-infections.
Dr Fenton is a theoretical ecologist with a strong interest in the use of simple mathematical models to describe the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of potentially complex host-parasite systems. In particular he is very interested in the community context of disease, both in terms of how coinfecting parasite species interact to alter host susceptibility and transmission, and how multiple host species combine to influence parasite transmission and persistence within diverse and species rich ecological communities.
Dr Frey has a strong interest in zoonotic and more specifically food- or water-borne parasites. She has developed methods for detecting and isolating different parasites (Toxoplasma and other apicomplexans, Trichinella, Echinococcus etc.) in their hosts, in food, or in their vector species. She has also performed research that advanced the molecular characterization of trichomonads, and has applied the novel diagnostic tools to epidemiologic investigations.
Dr Hansen is a Parasite Immunologist with a strong background in mechanisms of pathogenesis and immunity to Trypanosomes and Plasmodium parasites. Diana is the Head of the Malaria Immunology Group at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute in Melbourne. Her research includes pre-clinical infection models as well as human studies in endemic areas.
Dr Helmby is an immunologist with an interest in helminth infections. Helena’s current research is focused on studies of immunity to schistosomes and intestinal nematode infections, including how chronic worm infections may alter immune responses to concurrent infections, such as malaria.
Professor Hide has interests covering broad aspects of mainly protozoan parasitology although is focussed on Toxoplasma and trypanosomes. Understanding the interactions between hosts and protozoan parasites involves aspects ranging from cell and molecular interactions through epidemiology to ecology. Much of his research is focussed around these interfaces. Originally a molecular epidemiologist and population geneticist, Geoff’s research encompasses studies in human, animal and wildlife systems and includes genetic studies on host immune genes in natural populations as well as parasite distribution.
Professor Jabbar is an Associate Professor in Veterinary Parasitology at the University of Melbourne. Abdul’s current research involves the epidemiology and diagnosis of socioeconomically important parasites of animals, the evolution of parasites of Australian native animals, and the drug discovery against gastrointestinal nematodes of animals.
Professor Karunaweera’s research is in Medical Parasitology with emphases on malaria and leishmaniasis. She currently works on clinical, biological, epidemiological and molecular aspects of leishmaniasis to understand its pathology, pathogenesis and transmission that are important for better disease management and its control.
Dr Katzer leads a research group at the Moredun Research Institute in the United Kingdom, studying protozoan parasites (Cryptosporidium, Toxoplasma, Neospora, Giardia, Sarcocystis, Theileria and Babesia) of livestock, wildlife and humans. He obtained his D.Phil from the University of York and subsequently worked at the Roslin Institute, the Veterinary Schools of the Universities of Glasgow and Edinburgh and since 2007 he has been working at the Moredun Research Institute. His research area focuses on understanding parasite diversity, transmission routes and the development of methods that can be used to detect, speciate and genotype protozoan parasites in animal, environmental and food samples. His work aims to develop intervention strategies to stop/reduce the risk of parasite infection for animals and humans.
Dr LaCourse is a Senior Lecturer in Parasitology at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, where he is Director of Studies for Masters Programmes in Tropical Disease Biology. His research focuses upon helminth biochemical and molecular biology, with particular focus upon detoxification pathways and potential roles in development of drug resistance, and establishment and maintenance of parasitic infection. In addition, James has growing interests in field epidemiology and molecular monitoring of the potential for anthelmintic drug resistance in soil-transmitted helminths of sub-Saharan Africa, as well as helminths of veterinary importance.
He is most interested in the gene and non-coding RNA function and molecular evolution of human and animal parasitic organisms particular trypanosomes (Trypanosoma brucei) and Leishmania (L. donovani and L. amazonensis), epidemiology of zoonosis and foodborne parasites such as Toxoplasma gondii, Clonorchis sinensis and Angiostrongylus cantonensis. He is also interested in the development of compounds against trypanosomes and leishmania species and the pathogenesis of Trichomonas vaginalis in an animal model. In addition, he currently pays more attention to malaria parasites and particularly the resistance of Plasmodium falciparum to artemisinin combination therapies (ACTs) and on the development of new treatment for the ACTs resistance.
Dr McAllister is a veterinary pathologist with particular interest in diseases caused by protozoa and development of management procedures and vaccines to prevent them.
Professor Schetters is an immunologist specialised in vaccine development. He is inventor of recombinant vaccines against Babesia divergens and Babesia canis, and an improved vaccine formulation against Rhipicephalus ticks. Presently, he is director of ProtActivity, a company that focuses on vaccine development against ticks and tick-borne protozoal infections, and coordinator of CATVAC a consortium that works on the development of a vaccine against Rhipicephalus microplus ticks. He holds an Extraordinary Professor position at the Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.
Professor Torgerson is Professor of Epidemiology, at the Vetsuisse faculty, University of Zürich. He has a particular research interest in the epidemiology, transmission control and economic effects of parasites, particularly zoonotic parasites at the animal human interface. He is also interested in the statistical approaches to the analysis of parasite populations. Current studies focus on the epidemiology and burden of echinococcosis and food borne parasitic disease.
Professor Viney’s research focusses on the biology of parasitic nematodes, specifically investigating aspects of the control of developmental switches in their life cycles. His work particularly focuses on the parasitic nematode Strongyloides, but he also works with the free-living ‘model’ Caenorhabditis elegans. He also pursues interests in the eco-immunology of wild rodents, seeking to understand the natural immune environment in which wild parasites live and evolve.
Professor Wilson's research expertise: General area, parastic platyhelmiths. In particular, the cell biology and immunology of human blood flukes of the Genus Schistosoma. More specifically the interrogation of genomes, transcriptomes and proteomes in the quest for effective vaccines and new diagnostic tools.
Dr Zintl's research interests have focused on various parasites chiefly with the aim to investigate their importance for human and/or animal health in Ireland. A long-term research focus has been the ecology and epidemiology of ticks and tick-borne diseases. Expertise: (Molecular) epidemiology, detection and control of Cryptosporidium, Toxoplasma, Babesia, Neospora, trypanosomes, heartworm, liver and rumen fluke, ticks and lice; parasite-host cell interactions; GIS modeling of parasite distribution.
Dr Pascoe’s research interests lie in parasite and pathogen ecology. She holds a postdoctoral position at the CDC Pacific Southwest Center of Excellence in Vector-Borne Diseases. Her current research focusses on the ecology of ticks and tick-borne pathogens. Dr Pascoe strongly believes in making science more accessible to all, and is involved in several outreach projects with this aim, including her social media editorial role at Parasitology.
Maureen Williams has recently completed her PhD at Trinity College Dublin where she focused on the impact of behaviour-modifying parasites on ecosystem multifunctionality. She is passionate about science communication and outreach and hopes to increase the reach of Parasitology and Parasitology Open by engaging with researchers, students, and the public.