My name is Meredith G. Morrow and I am a graduate of The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (U.S. Department of Defense) in the Preventive Medicine and Biometrics Program in Bethesda, Maryland. My research interests are in the areas of Epidemiology (Disease Surveillance/ Outbreak Investigation), Disease Prevention/Community Outreach, Public Health Policy, International/Global Health and Prevention of disease through behavior modification.

Current Projects:

(2008-2009) A standardized and portable field bioassay to evaluate interior residual sprays for control of malaria:

Interior residual spraying (IRS) is the practice of indoor application of residual insecticides or repellents as a way to halt the malaria life cycle either by insecticidal action or prevention of mosquito entrance. However, there is currently no standardized field method to evaluate the susceptibility of vectors to available insecticides or repellents. Therefore, this project proposes to establish a portable and standardized field bioassay to evaluate up to four insecticides or repellents for IRS in tents. Past studies on IRS have mainly been targeted on permanent/semi-permanent structures. This proposed project suggests implementation of a portable field bioassay which can be set up quickly to determine the best response during an emergency or military situation when displaced persons are temporarily housed in tents.The bioassay also offers a unique way to monitor vector susceptibility to commonly used insecticides. The bioassay will be developed by standardizing tentage, surveillance methods and experimental design/analysis. The first year of the study will utilize a known site in Belize for two weeks in May 2008 where a dependable vector population and trained workers are available at the Ministry of Health of Belize. The second and third years will replicate the study in the very different disease environments of Tanzania and Thailand, respectively.

(2007-2008) GIS/Remote Sensing used to Predict Sand fly Habitat on Select Military Installations in the United States. (full article in .pdf format) 

The goal of this study is to predict which military bases have the highest percentage of sand flies and to determine if it may be possible for military personnel returning to the U.S. infected with Old World Leishmaniasis, to infect the local sand fly population in the New World. The end result was a risk analysis (with risk map) of the military bases under study.

(2006-2007) The Ecological Relationship between Pistia stratiotes, Hydrocotyle ranunculoides and Mansonia spp. (Diptera: Culicidae) in Sarasota County: (full thesis in .pdf format)

After receiving three individual grants, I carried out my first independent research experiment for my baccalaureate thesis studying mosquitoes associated with water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes) in Sarasota County. For four months, I studied the biological and social aspects of mosquito-borne disease control, and carried out disease surveillance at five sites which were chosen using Sarasota County's Vector Control Monitoring System (VCMS) which uses satellite imagery to predict vector-borne disease risk. Although Mansonia spp. are not specifically noted for questing human blood, the sheer abundance of these species (in association with water lettuce) increases its potential as a human pest and disease vector in Sarasota County. Through parity analysis, trap monitoring, water lettuce sampling, and PCR techniques, my research and generated results have helped Sarasota County Mosquito Management Services and Sarasota County Public Health Officials establish criteria for control strategies where Mansonia spp. are a problem. In the latter part of my study, I also researched another aquatic plant (Hydrocotyle ranunculoides) which may serve to compete with water lettuce for nutrients in certain environmental conditions.

Selected Publications:

Morrow M, Johnson R, Claborn D. (2008) Mosquito Vector Population Dynamics Immediately Before and After Tropical Storms Alma and Arthur in Northern Belize (2008). Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association. (In Progress)

Morrow M, Polanco J, Johnson R, Claborn D. (2008) Testing a Portable, Field Bioassay: Failure of Interior Residual Sprays in Military Issued Two-Man Tents. Journal of Military Medicine. (Submitted)

Claborn D, Masuoka P, Morrow M, Keep L. (2008) Habitat Analysis of North American Sand Flies Potentially Exposed to Exotic Leishmania Parasites by Returning Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. International Journal of Health Geographics.7:65.

Gilman, M. 2006. The Ecological Relationship between Pistia stratiotes, Hydrocotyle ranunculoides and Mansonia spp. (Diptera: Culicidae) in Sarasota County. [B.A. thesis]: New College of Florida (The Honors College of Florida), 104 p.