Mr Tom Pennance

Tom Pennance is a NERC funded PhD student based in the Parasites and Vectors division at the Natural History Museum supported by the Cardiff Research in Infection and Parasites in Ecological Systems (CRIPES) group at Cardiff University. Tom's research is focussed on schistosomiasis, a water-borne disease transmitted through freshwater snails in tropical and sub-tropical regions. It is this relationship between schistosomes and snails that he is currently investigating through fieldwork in East Africa and using by museum collections as part of his PhD, in an effort to uncover genetic and environmental links that determine transmission.

He is also working on projects funded by the Schistosomiasis Consortium for Operational Research and Evaluation (SCORE). Using field collected parasite and vector samples & parasite genetic markers the group aims to determine the impact of different schistosomiasis control programs on the schistosome parasite populations in endemic areas of Niger, Zanzibar and Tanzania. The results will help inform & guide schistosomiasis and NTD control programs in endemic countries as well as further our understanding of schistosome biology and evolution.

Find out more about Tom's LCNTDR funded research trip