Understanding how Mayaro virus adapts to urban mosquitoes
Official title: Adaptation of Mayaro virus to urban mosquitoes
Funded at University of California at Davis · NIH-11096092 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study is looking at how the Mayaro virus, which is spread by mosquitoes, might change to infect common city mosquitoes, helping us understand and prevent future outbreaks in urban areas.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California at Davis NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Davis, United States) |
| Project start | June 1, 2024 |
| Project end | April 30, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $241,500 |
| NIH project number | 5R21AI178069-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11096092 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are individuals living in urban areas of Latin America who may be at risk of Mayaro virus infection.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who do not reside in urban areas or those who are not exposed to mosquito populations are unlikely to benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research investigates the adaptation of the Mayaro virus, a mosquito-borne pathogen, to urban mosquito species like Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. By studying how the virus may evolve to infect these common urban mosquitoes, the research aims to understand the potential for future outbreaks in cities. The approach involves laboratory experiments that simulate viral evolution and assess how changes in the virus could affect its transmission dynamics. This work is crucial for predicting and preventing possible epidemics caused by Mayaro virus in urban settings.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could lead to better strategies for preventing Mayaro virus outbreaks in urban populations.
How similar studies have gone: Previous research has shown that similar approaches to studying viral adaptation have successfully identified factors that contribute to outbreaks of related viruses like chikungunya.
Where this research is happening
-
University of California at Davis
Davis, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Coffey, Lark L — University of California at Davis
- Study coordinator: Coffey, Lark L
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
UC Davis IGA Innovation Center
A research center at UC Davis will study gene-edited livestock to improve animal health, safety, and policy through sharing genetic data and findings about genome edits in cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats.
-
Administrative Core of an equitable breast cancer screening program
A national program headed from UC Davis is coordinating several research efforts to improve how breast cancer screening is done in community settings.
-
The role of novelty and surprise in learning for people with Alzheimer’s disease
A study explores how surprising events affect memory and learning in people related to Alzheimer’s disease, using everyday tasks to see how the brain remembers new information.
-
Understanding how distraction affects students and how to measure it better
This grant studies why distracted students, including those with ADHD, struggle in real-life learning and tests a clearer way to measure distraction in everyday settings.
-
California Partnership for Personalized Nutrition
A California clinical center is testing personalized dietary approaches to improve blood sugar and health for adults with diabetes by using big data and AI to tailor meals.
-
Advancing gastric cancer care for Latinos through patient-derived tumor models
Aimed at Latinos with gastric cancer, this project uses patient-derived tumor models to study how cancer biology and treatments work in real tumors.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.