Personal Statement
I studied Veterinary Medicine at the University of Liverpool, graduating in 2015, and also completed a Master’s degree in Infectious Disease and Epidemiology. Since then, I have continued at Liverpool in a research role, completing my PhD in Veterinary Microbiology in 2019, where I investigated symbiotic bacteria of biting midges and their potential to influence pathogen transmission to livestock. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I worked with the Centre for Genomic Research on surveillance of circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants and contributed to the development of cost-effective approaches for monitoring outbreaks. My research has since focused on mosquito-microbe interactions in the UK, including the detection of neglected mosquito-borne viruses. I am currently undertaking an HBLB Postdoctoral Fellowship aimed at improving UK preparedness for equine mosquito-borne diseases, including West Nile virus, through social science research with Thoroughbred-sector stakeholders and the evaluation of mosquito control interventions. My day-to-day job involves several different methodological approaches including insect laboratory and field work, molecular biology, genomics and virology techniques.

Research Overview
My research explores how microbes and changing environmental conditions shape the risk of mosquito-borne diseases. Across Europe, mosquito-borne viruses are becoming more widespread, with some now established in areas where they were once rare and others appearing in new regions for the first time. The UK is increasingly part of this changing picture: Usutu virus became the first mosquito-borne virus known to be established in the UK following its detection in birds and mosquitoes in 2020, and West Nile virus has since been detected in UK mosquitoes for the first time. These developments highlight the growing risk that mosquito-borne viruses may emerge or expand in the UK. My work focuses on understanding this risk, including research on neglected mosquito-associated viruses in the UK and on how temperature affects the transmission potential of emerging viruses such as Usutu virus. I am currently undertaking an HBLB Postdoctoral Fellowship aimed at improving UK preparedness for equine mosquito-borne diseases, including West Nile virus, through research on stakeholder knowledge and behaviours and the evaluation of mosquito control strategies relevant to horses. More broadly, I am also interested in championing innovative sequencing techniques to strengthen veterinary pathogen surveillance.