Vanessa Rivera-Amill
Ponce Health Sciences University, PR·Public Health & Epidemiology
Dengue, chikungunya, Zika and Oropouche are arboviruses, viruses spread by insects such as mosquitoes. They cause frequent outbreaks, and Puerto Rico is a key transmission hotspot in the Americas.
- Fields
Public Health & Epidemiology
Microbiology & Immunology
- Topics
arboviruses
dengue
chikungunya
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through Aug 2030
What they work on
- Strengthen surveillance and research capacity for acute febrile illnesses in Puerto Rico to improve detection of dengue, chikungunya, Zika and Oropouche, by combining clinical, community-based and laboratory data through the existing SEDSS and COPA platforms.
- Improve data management, analytics and predictive modeling of arbovirus outbreaks to guide mosquito control and forecasting, together with the CDC Dengue Branch and the Puerto Rico Vector Control Unit.
- Build lasting partner networks and local public health staff capacity so that acute febrile illness surveillance and research in Puerto Rico continue over the long term.
More about the research
Their symptoms look alike, which makes diagnosis and outbreak response harder. Newer threats hit hardest in populations with no prior immunity. Faster detection could limit how far an outbreak spreads and reduce the strain on health systems.
Why it matters
Arbovirus outbreaks such as dengue and Zika burden Puerto Rico's residents and health system. Earlier case detection and better forecasting could help public health agencies target mosquito control and messaging, use resources more efficiently, and reduce disease spread and healthcare costs. Puerto Rico could also serve as a model for arbovirus surveillance across the Americas.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Natasha Tilston
Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis, IN·Microbiology & Immunology
Identify, using cell culture infection experiments, how the different glycoproteins carried by circulating Oropouche virus reassortants change viral phenotypes such as entry into host cells.
Alexander Travis
Cornell University, NY·Public Health & Epidemiology
Test whether community-engaged research that combines weather, land-use, human and animal health, behavior and pathogen genomic data can produce predictive epidemiological models that forecast infectious disease outbreaks.
Alun Lloyd
North Carolina State University, NC·Mathematics & Statistics
Measure how residents of Ibagué, Colombia differ in adopting mosquito-prevention behaviors around the home, such as water container management, and identify the cues that drive them, using observational and experimental social science methods.
The school
Ponce Health Sciences University: 1 labs on PI Pages, 14 research doctorates a year.
Reach out
A start for your email. Fill in the brackets.