Juan David Ramirez Gonzalez, Ph.D.

Sections

Juan David Ramirez Gonzalez, Ph.D.
Juan David Ramirez Gonzalez, Ph.D.
Title
Postdoctoral Fellow
Department
Molecular Parasitology Unit
Institution
The National Institutes of Health, NIAID
Address
4 Memorial Drive
Building 4, Room B1-06
City, State, ZIP
Bethesda, MD 20892-0425
Country
United States
Phone
(301) 402-1609
Email
[email protected]
Website
http://www.niaid.nih.gov/labsandresources/labs/aboutlabs/lpd/molecularparasitologyunit/Pages/Grigg.aspx
Research field
Parasitology
Award year
2014
Country of origin
Colombia
Mentor name
Michael E. Grigg, Ph.D.

Research

The Grigg lab is investigating how the exchange of genetic information between one parasite and another can precipitate the outbreak of disease. Parasites, such as those that cause malaria and toxoplasmosis, have complex life cycles that include propagation by sexual reproduction—a sharing of genes that may contribute to their infectiousness. The goal of my project is to explore whether the parasites that cause Giardia and leishmaniasis—diseases particularly prevalent in South America—also reproduce sexually in the wild and whether this genetic exchange contributes to the generation of strains associated with disease epidemics based on a genomics approach. These findings will broaden our understanding of parasite biology and could lead to new strategies for the treatment of parasitic diseases.

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