Research programme overview:

My research develops transferable genetic biocontrol tools for major agricultural insect pests (with Ceratitis capitata and Anastrepha ludens as key systems), focusing on sex-ratio distortion, genetic sexing strains, pgSIT approaches and gene-drive-related concepts, alongside evolutionary studies of insect sex-determination genes.

Research grants/contracts secured (awarded; active and/or overlapping with the probation period)

USDA (Coordinator / PI)

• 2026–2027 – USDA agreement 26-8130-1007-CA (Year 4)

Development of Precision Guided SIT (pgSIT) in Tephritids.

• 2024–2025 – USDA agreement 26-8130-1007-CA (Year 3)

Development of Precision Guided SIT (pgSIT) in Tephritids.

• 2023–2024 – USDA agreement 23-8130-1007-CA (Year 2)

Development of Precision Guided SIT (pgSIT) in Tephritids.

• 2025–2029 – USDA agreement 26-8130-1164-CA

Develop Mexfly control strategy.

• USDA funding via APHIS/PPQ, annual support over multiple years and an ongoing multi-year agreement.

Horizon Europe:

• 2022–2026- REACT (HORIZON-RIA-CL6-2021; SEP-210764180) – WP4 Coordinator
  Rapid elimination of invasive agricultural insect pest outbreaks via Sterile Insect Technique programmes.

• 2026– Horizon Europe Connect Fund (Imperial/seed funding and strategic development):
  To establish the SPACE consortium, support the organisation of a 3-day workshop at Imperial (2-4 June 2026)
  within the European Talent Academy.
  
  Read more in our blog article about the ETA 2025

International research programmes

• 2026-2031 – IAEA CRP – appointed Principal Investigator under IAEA Research Agreement No. 29462: Advanced Approaches for the Development of Genetic Sexing Strains for SIT Application

Research workers and/or students supervised

Doctoral supervision

• Primary Supervisor: Serafima Davydova (PhD) – thesis defended November 2025.
• Co-supervisor: Samuel (Matthew) Shackleton‑Chavez (PhD) and Amber Hall (PhD)- shared supervision with Prof. Tracey Chapman and Dr Philip Leftwich; University of East Anglia, School of Biological Sciences.
• Supervisor for a PhD student from Ghana under Imperial’s Global Development Fellowship (March–July 2026)

Research staff/lab management

• Ongoing research leadership, including management of lab activities and supervision/mentoring of research staff (a research associate and two laboratory technicians).

I have successfully established an independent, externally funded research programme on genetic approaches to sustainable insect pest control. Key achievements include:

• Secured funding from USDA-APHIS-PPQ to support my independent research programme, with continued annual funding and an additional year  currently under review.
• Awarded Horizon Europe Connect Fund to establish a new European consortium (SPACE project) and organise a three-day international workshop (2–4 June 2026, Imperial College London).
• First woman appointed as Principal Investigator in the IAEA Coordinated Research Programme (CRP): Advanced Approaches for the Development of Genetic Sexing Strains for Sterile Insect Technique Applications (Research Agreement No. 29462).
• Submitted international patent application (PCT/US2025/061221), filed 23 December 2025: Method for Sex-Sorting Insects.
• Established and operationalised a high-containment insect rearing facility for Ceratitis capitata and Anastrepha ludens, including successful APHA/DEFRA licensing for import/export.
• Developed strategic industrial collaboration with Agragene Inc.

• Established a co-funded PhD scholarship between DoLS and Agragene Inc.
• Built strong European collaborations within the REACT project.
• Served on PhD recruitment panels within the Department of Life Sciences (DoLS), assessing research potential and alignment with departmental strategy.
• Appointed Co-Lead (invited) of the Evolutionary Biology Research Theme, contributing to the strategic redesign of research themes, development of cross-campus community initiatives (EvoBio seminars and workshops), and shaping the theme’s external communication and visibility.
• Member of the Research and Fellowship Committee (DoLS), contributing to departmental research strategy and the internal review of grant and fellowship applications.
• Appointed Host Supervisor for a Global Development Fellowship PhD student from Ghana (March–July 2026), delivering research-led supervision and advanced laboratory training within Imperial’s global development and capacity-building strategy.

Courses and Contributions

Undergraduate lecturing

• LIFE40004- Molecular Biology (2025–2026)
• Delivered 2 contact hours (lectures) on Mendelian genetics.
• Assessment design: prepared 4 MCQs and 2 essay questions for the main examination, plus an equivalent set for the resit examination

Undergraduate tutorials / small-group teaching

• LIFE60043- Advanced Topics in Parasitology and Vector Biology (ATPVB) -Academic Tutor
• Contributed to the Critical Review Paper tutorial.
• Contributed to Grant Proposal Tutorial I and Grant Proposal Tutorial II.
• Participated in Grant Proposal Presentation sessions (delivered over two days).
• Assessed and marked grant proposals.

Tutoring and student support

LIFE40004 – Molecular Biology (2025–2026)

• In addition to lecturing, served as academic tutor, delivering a Molecular Biology essay tutorial and 1 hour of Q&A to support student learning and exam preparation.

Academic Tutor – Tutored Dissertation (Convenor: Dr Tiago Dias da Costa)

• Provided academic support to undergraduate students in dissertation development and scientific writing.

Personal Tutor

• Appointed Personal Tutor for 8 undergraduate students and 3 MSc students, offering academic guidance, welfare support, and progression advice.

Supervision of student research projects

Undergraduate Final Year Projects (BSc)

• Ella Planchard (2025, completed): Characterising the interactions of MoY and tra in Ceratitis capitata.
• Maria Manousopoulou (2026, ongoing): Research proposal (ongoing).
• Tim Hancer (2026, ongoing): Laboratory project (ongoing).
• Keane Teo (2026, ongoing): Laboratory project (ongoing).
• Arvind Thevathasan (2026, ongoing): Laboratory project (ongoing).

MSc / MRes rotation and project supervision

• Michael Perret (MSc-ABB, 2025, completed): Experimental Assessment of Potential Male Fertility Gene Targets for Establishing pgSIT Strains in Ceratitis capitata.
• Daisy Yu (MRes – MCB Project 2, 2025, completed): Establishment and characterisation of a novel population control strategy for non-model tephritid pests.
• Yufeng Tian (MSc – MCB, Project 1, 2026 ongoing): research project aligned with the REACT consortium.
  • As part of experimental training, the student undertook aresearch visit (27 January – 1 February 2026) to Justus Liebig University Giessen (Germany), hosted by Marc Schetelig (REACT Coordinator), strengthening international collaboration, and providing advanced technical training.

Doctoral supervision

• Primary Supervisor: Serafima Davydova (PhD) – thesis successfully defended November 2025.
• Co-supervisor: Samuel (Matthew) Shackleton‑Chavez (PhD)– shared supervision with Tracey Chapman and Dr Philip Leftwich; University of East Anglia, School of Biological Sciences.
• Co-supervisor: Amber Hall (PhD) – shared supervision with Tracey Chapman and Dr Philip Leftwich; University of East Anglia, School of Biological Sciences.
• Host supervisor for a PhD student from Ghana under Imperial’s Global Development Fellowship (March–July 2026). This four-month placement will focus on advanced laboratory training, research collaboration, and capacity building within an LMIC context.
• PhD training partnerships:led a co-funded PhD scholarship between the Department of Life Sciences and Agragene Inc., strengthening academia–industry collaboration.

Departmental leadership, governance, and committee service

• Invited Co-Lead, Evolutionary Biology Research Theme (DoLS): contributed to the strategic redesign of departmental research themes, helped develop cross-campus community initiatives (EvoBio seminars and workshops), and supported the theme’s external communication and visibility.
• Member, Research and Grants Committee (DoLS): continued service (role held since 2020) as a peer reviewer for new research strategies and fellowship applications, contributing to departmental quality assurance and research development.

Building and enabling the departmental research environment (operations, compliance, facilities)

• Regulatory compliance and institutional permissions:led the licensing process enabling the import/export of Ceratitis capitata and Anastrepha ludens in England and secured the required Imperial permissions to initiate the research programme.
• Facility development:established the insect rearing facility for Ceratitis capitata and Anastrepha ludens in collaboration with professional services and technical colleagues (Project Management, Technical Operations, and Health & Safety), strengthening departmental infrastructure and capability.

Departmental profile, partnerships and engagement.

• Academia-industry link for DoLS:established a strategic agreement with Agragene Inc. and led a co–funded DoLS – Agragene PhD scholarship, strengthening departmental translational activity and external partnerships.
• Public communication and visibility:regularly engaged with UK mediathrough interviews and articles to communicate research and support responsible discussion of genetic engineering–related work, enhancing the department’s external profile.
• Institution-hosted consortium activity:secured Horizon Europe Connect Fund support to develop the SPACE consortium, including organisation of a 3-day workshop at Imperial (2–4 June 2026) to coordinate future European collaboration. Selected call HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-01 (Research and Innovation Action- two-stage): Strengthening plant health: addressing emerging plant pest risks.

DoLS Seminar Series at Imperial College London:

• As part of the DoLS Seminars 2024–2025, on March 26th, 2025, I organized a seminar delivered by Dr Jackson Champer, Assistant Professor at Peking University, entitled: “Challenges and Solutions for Deployment of Gene Drive.”

• As part of the DoLS Seminars 2025–2026, on April 30th, 2026, I organized a seminar delivered by Dr Víctor López del Amo, Assistant Professor at UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, Texas, USA, entitled: “Expanding the CRISPR Toolbox: Cas12a-Based Gene Drive and pgSIT Technologies for Vector Control.”