ECIMN Presents "Vectors & Viruses...impacting human health in a changing world"
The registration period has ended.
Please join East Central Illinois Master Naturalists for an evening seminar:
Monday, April 21, 2025, 7 pm, Extension Auditorium
Speaker: Joseph Spina
Title: Vectors and viruses: how ticks and mosquitoes are impacting human health in a changing world
Description: Bacteria, viruses, and parasites have been spread from host to host by tick and mosquito vectors within their respective ecosystems since time immemorial. But what happens when those ecosystems are disturbed? How does a virus, a tick, or a mosquito cross oceans, continents, and ecological barriers to disturb the balance of human health? How do human activities ranging from urbanization to climate change impact these dynamics? Join our speaker to learn the basics of these arthropod disease vectors, the pathogens they carry, and how scientists are working to better understand them and the roles they play in a rapidly changing world.
Bio: Joseph Spina is a master’s student in the Department of Entomology in the School of Integrative Biology at UIUC. He is doing research at the Illinois Natural History Survey’s Medical Entomology Lab under the guidance of Dr. Christopher Stone. His research focus is on the ecology and virology of emerging vector-borne arboviruses.
Please check your email confirmation for the Zoom link information to attend virtually.
If you have questions about the speaker, please contact Walt Hurley at wlhurley@illinois.edu
Questions about the event itself? Contact Melissa at mkberg3@illinois.edu