# Molecular epidemiology and serology of malaria under shifting agricultural practices in Africa

> **NIH NIH F32** · CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $38,280

## Abstract

Project Summary
This is an application for a F32 fellowship for Dr. Elizabeth Hemming-Schroeder, a Postdoctoral Scholar
proposing to train under the sponsorship of Dr. James Kazura, Professor of Global Health at Case Western
Reserve University. The overall goal for this fellowship is for Dr. Hemming-Schroeder to cultivate her skills to
become a future independent investigator in the field of malaria epidemiology. Specifically, this F32 fellowship
will provide Dr. Hemming-Schroeder with the necessary support to achieve the following goals: 1) Design
epidemiological studies to test hypotheses related to malaria transmission and control; 2) Analyze large sets of
genomic data using bioinformatics; 3) Use immunological techniques to study malaria epidemiology; and 4)
Develop leadership and professional skills to lead an interdisciplinary research team. To combat food insecurity
and meet increasing water demands under rapid population growth, water resource development projects are
anticipated to rapidly increase in sub-Saharan Africa. The impacts that these water resource development
projects will have on malaria risk remain poorly understood. This project will focus on assessing the impacts of
shifting agricultural practices and human migration resulting from irrigation projects on parasite population
genetics and malaria epidemiology. In newly irrigated and non-irrigated areas of Kenya, Dr. Hemming-Schroeder
will monitor land use and population movement and use cross-sectional surveys, a longitudinal cohort study, and
passive case surveillance to monitor changes in parasite populations in local residents and migrant laborers and
malaria incidence in the areas over time. In Aim 1, Dr. Hemming-Schroeder will examine the impacts of shifting
agricultural practices on parasite population genetics and diversity through genotyping of microsatellite and drug
resistance markers, as well as amplicon next-generation sequencing and bioinformatic analysis. In Aim 2, Dr.
Hemming-Schroeder will determine the impacts of shifting agricultural practices on symptomatic disease burden,
parasite exposure history, and infection complexity through passive case detection in local health centers and
hospitals, serology for biomarkers of parasite exposure, bioinformatic analysis of deep sequences, and mixed
effects model analysis. This research will help to improve our understanding of the impacts water resource
development projects have on malaria epidemiology and population genetics, which is critically important to
being able to maintain effective malaria control programs. Data from this research will serve as preliminary data
for a K22 or K99 application in the final year of the F32 fellowship. Through the proposed research activities and
training plan, Dr. Hemming-Schroeder will gain skills in epidemiology, bioinformatics, immunology, and
leadership and professional skills, which will help her to gain independent funding and prepare her for a faculty
career leading an i...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10308046
- **Project number:** 5F32AI147460-03
- **Recipient organization:** CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Elizabeth Anne Hemming-Schroeder
- **Activity code:** F32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $38,280
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-12-01 → 2022-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10308046

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10308046, Molecular epidemiology and serology of malaria under shifting agricultural practices in Africa (5F32AI147460-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10308046. Licensed CC0.

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