Mosquito research receives two Veni’s

Carolina Andrade and Rebecca Halbach, both Medical Microbiology, have received Veni grants from NWO. Halbach is going to investigate how genes are regulated during early development of the yellow fever mosquito. Andrade is going to analyze what role the saliva of mosquitoes plays in the transmission of malaria parasites.

Carolina Andrade: The role of mosquito saliva in malaria parasite transmission
Malaria is a devastating infectious disease endemic to many tropical countries. Malaria infection starts with a mosquito bite that introduces malaria parasites, mixed with mosquito saliva, into the human host. This project aims to understand the role of saliva in parasite infection of the human host and transmission to the mosquito. This work will provide unprecedented insights into host­ mosquito-parasite interactions and their impact on parasite infection. It may help to identify much needed novel targets to interrupt transmission.

Rebecca Halbach: The genome at the break of dawn - illuminating transcriptional control of zygotic genome activation in mosquitoes
Mosquitoes transmit dangerous infectious diseases to humans, but there is still very little known about the biology of these insects themselves. Even the fundamental process of embryonic development is not well studied. Embryonic development is a highly complex process, during which expression of thousands of genes needs to be tightly orchestrated. The researchers investigate the mechanisms by which this is achieved during early development of the yellow fever mosquito. This will contribute to our understanding of the biology of this important disease vector and can help to develop vector control strategies to decrease disease burden.

Personal grant
With Veni funding of up to 280,000 euros, laureates can further develop their own research ideas over the next three years. The Veni is a personal scientific grant, is part of the NWO Talent Program and is aimed at researchers who have recently obtained their PhDs. The Talent Program gives researchers the freedom to conduct their own research based on creativity and passion. The program stimulates innovation and curiosity. Free research contributes to and prepares us for tomorrow's society. Together with the Vidi and Vici grants, Veni is part of the Talent Program.

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