Dr Maria Luisa Simoes

I am a biomedical scientist and a molecular vector biologist working with the deadliest animal on Earth: the malaria mosquito. My research centers on discovering novel mosquito innate immunity genes and pathways and deciphering the molecular mechanisms of malaria transmission, with the goal of identifying targets that can be used for the development of transgenic malaria vectors. I engineered several genetically modified malaria vector strains that have the potential to be used as novel malaria control strategies to stop malaria transmission. Following very productive years at the Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD, USA), I am now an Assistant Professor at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. I am the recipient of the 2022 Breakthrough in Medical Entomology Award and the 2019 Young Investigator Award from the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.