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July 2018 Monthly Meeting – Citizen science, kissing bugs, and Chagas disease at the human-wildlife-domestic animal interface in the Southern United States
July 19, 2018 @ 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Speaker: Sarah A. Hamer – Director of Schubot Exotic Bird Health Center, Associate Professor of Epidemiology, Associate Wildlife Biologist
Title: Citizen science, kissing bugs, and Chagas disease at the human-wildlife-domestic animal interface in the Southern United States
Description: Many diseases emerge at the interface of human and animal populations. Chagas disease, caused by a protozoan parasite spread by ‘kissing bugs’, can lead to deadly heart disease in humans and animals. There is increasing recognition for risk of local transmission across the Southern US where kissing bugs occur. The TAMU College of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Entomology, TX Dept. State Health Services, and others have collaborated to develop a Citizen Science program to learn more about Chagas disease risk. Members of the public, medical and veterinary communities, and others can submit kissing bugs they encounter to our research laboratory, where we identify and test bugs for infection, learn about the vertebrates upon which they have previously fed, describe genetic variation in the parasite, and disseminate this information to for its use in public health, veterinary medical, and pest control arenas. This free service has resulted in over 5,000 submissions in the past 5 years. This presentation will detail our citizen science program in addition to other studies of wildlife, dogs, and humans across the state to present a contemporary understanding of the risk of this vector-borne disease.
Date: Thursday, July 19, 2018
Location: Brazos Valley Museum of Natural History (BVMNH)
3232 Briarcrest Drive
Bryan, TX 77802
Start Time: 6:30 pm
End Time: 7:30 pm
FREE and open to the public, plenty of parking at the BVMNH.