Foy Lab

As a member of the Center for Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases (CVID) at Colorado State University, the Foy laboratory focuses on the interactions of vectors with their hosts and with vector pathogens. The goal is to link research employing molecular, proteomic and genomic techniques to practical applications for controlling arthropod-borne diseases. A main research component in the Foy lab is to interrupt the intense transmission of malaria and arboviruses by targeting the vector through their bloodmeals using drugs that attack vector physiology and that inhibit pathogen development or using anti-vector immunity driven by vaccination. The Foy lab is also developing mosquitoes and other vectors as biosurveillance tools, studying unique aspects of arbovirus transmission and arbovirus survival in vectors, and studying poorly understood mosquito pathogens for their prospects to become vector-borne disease control tools.

The Foy Lab is currently seeking at least one postdoctoral fellow to work in the scope of our funded research projects. Please review the posting details. Application materials should be submitted to the Department of MIP Postdoctoral Fellow – Open Pool at: https://jobs.colostate.edu/postings/79928 and reference your interest for the specific posting within the Foy Lab (202000893AP).

research project

Repeat Ivermectin Mass Drug Administrations for Malaria control II (RIMDAMAL II)

This is a cluster randomized clinical trial in Burkina Faso to test whether repeated ivermectin mass drug administrations, integrated into a monthly delivery platform with standard malaria control measures of seasonal malaria chemoprevention and insecticide-treated bed net distribution, will reduce childhood malaria incidence and limit resistance development in mosquitoes and parasites.

research project

TRANSMIT: Tracking Antimalarial Resistance in Mosquito Populations

This project is designed to compare malaria parasite drug resistance tracking techniques using human blood samples versus using captured blood fed mosquito samples.

research project

Comparison of mosquito age-grading measures in the RIMDAMAL II randomized, double-blind clinical trial

This project is comparing new and old mosquito age grading techniques within the context of our RIMDAMAL II clinical trial to best determine how different vector-control measures mosquito population age structure.

research project

Aedes-borne arbovirus transmission

We are studying humans and animal models to characterize the viral dynamics, host responses and disease outcomes resulting from Aedes-borne arbovirus transmission. We are especially interested in understanding these outcomes from Zika virus transmission by the sexual and mosquito-borne routes. Our human studies partners are researchers at FIOCRUZ, Aggeu Magalhaes Institute, Recife, PE, Brazil.

research project

Endectocides for West Nile virus control

This project designed to develop and test endectocide-treated bird feed for efficacy in controlling West Nile virus transmission. Our partners are colleagues at UC-Davis, CDC-DVBD, and TDA Research, Inc.

Publications

Ivermectin as a novel complementary malaria control tool to reduce incidence and prevalence: a modelling study.

Slater HC, Foy BD, Kobylinski K, Chaccour C, Watson OJ, Hellewell J, Aljayyoussi G, Bousema T, Burrows J, D’Alessandro U, Alout H, Ter Kuile FO, Walker PGT, Ghani AC, Smit MR.
Lancet Infect Dis. 2020 Jan 13. pii: S1473-3099(19)30633-4. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(19)30633-4. [Epub ahead of print]

Successive blood meals enhance virus dissemination within mosquitoes and increase transmission potential.

Armstrong PM, Ehrlich HY, Magalhaes T, Miller MR, Conway PJ, Bransfield A, Misencik MJ, Gloria-Soria A, Warren JL, Andreadis TG, Shepard JJ, Foy BD, Pitzer VE, Brackney DE.
Nat Microbiol. 2020 Feb;5(2):239-247. doi: 10.1038/s41564-019-0619-y. Epub 2019 Dec 9.

Induction of RNA interference to block Zika virus replication and transmission in the mosquito Aedes aegypti.

Magalhaes T, Bergren NA, Bennett SL, Borland EM, Hartman DA, Lymperopoulos K, Sayre R, Borlee BR, Campbell CL, Foy BD, Olson KE, Blair CD, Black W 4th, Kading RC.
Insect Biochem Mol Biol. 2019 Aug;111:103169. doi: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2019.05.004. Epub 2019 May 17.

Efficacy and risk of harms of repeat ivermectin mass drug administrations for control of malaria (RIMDAMAL): a cluster-randomised trial.

Foy BD, Alout H, Seaman JA, Rao S, Magalhaes T, Wade M, Parikh S, Soma DD, Sagna AB, Fournet F, Slater HC, Bougma R, Drabo F, Diabaté A, Coulidiaty AGV, Rouamba N, Dabiré RK.
Lancet. 2019 Apr 13;393(10180):1517-1526. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(18)32321-3. Epub 2019 Mar 14.

Evaluation of a novel West Nile virus transmission control strategy that targets Culex tarsalis with endectocide-containing blood meals.

Nguyen C, Gray M, Burton TA, Foy SL, Foster JR, Gendernalik AL, Rückert C, Alout H, Young MC, Boze B, Ebel GD, Clapsaddle B, Foy BD.
PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2019 Mar 7;13(3):e0007210. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0007210. eCollection 2019 Mar.

more publications

People

Brian Foy, Ph.D.

Lab Principal Investigator [PI]
Professor

Teca Magalhaes, Ph.D.

Affiliate Faculty/Collaborator

Maddie Sorensen

Research Associate I

Chilinh Nguyen, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Lyndsey Gray, M.S.P.H.

Graduate Research Assistant

Megan Miller

Graduate Research Assistant

Augustine Rouamba

Graduate Research Assistant

Ashley Knight

Student Researcher

Foy Lab Alumni

Soleil Foy and Jasmine Donkoh in the insectary.

Erin Markle presenting her undergraduate research.

Members of the Foy lab participated in a local March for Science.

Chilinh Nguyen and Brian Foy building field study boxes.

news and updates view all

August 3, 2020 ‘Zoonotic Spillover and Emerging Diseases’ Webinar

Brian Foy and Tony Schountz from the Center of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases discussed the science behind animal-to-human transmission of infectious diseases and how COVID-19 has played out thus far.
March 13, 2019 Stopping Malaria at the Bite

An international team led by CSU Professor Brian Foy found that they were able to reduce cases of malaria in children in several villages in Burkina Faso by 20 percent, using a drug called ivermectin.
March 12, 2019 CSU Researcher Discovers Drug can Reduce Malaria Cases in Children [Video]

Brian Foy explains the scientific aims of a recent international study in Burkina Faso to reduce malaria transmission using a drug called ivermectin.