Rate My Professor Joana Silva

Her research employs evolutionary genetics and genomic sciences for basic and translational studies of parasitic infectious diseases, particularly Apicomplexa parasites including Plasmodium (human malaria), Theileria (cattle and horse theileriosis), Babesia (human and bovine babesiosis), and Cryptosporidium (human cryptosporidiosis). Projects investigate species biology and evolution, host-parasite interactions via comparative genomics and transcriptomics, and pathogen genetic variation's effects on drug resistance, vaccine efficacy, and design using population genomics. Her work has received funding from the NSF, NIH, USDA, and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Notable awards include the Maryland’s Top 100 Women Award (2013), Baltimore City Community College Partnership Award (2016), and Dr. Patricia Sokolove Outstanding Mentor Award from UMB Graduate Student Association (2016), alongside earlier fellowships. Key publications encompass 'Whole-genome sieve analysis: identification of protective malaria antigens by leveraging allele-specific vaccine efficacy' (Vaccine, 2025), 'Plasmodium simium: birth and evolution of a zoonotic malaria parasite species' (Parasitology, 2025), 'Regular Plasmodium falciparum importation onto Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea, hampers malaria elimination' (PLoS Global Public Health, 2025), 'Immunogenomic profile at baseline predicts host susceptibility to clinical malaria disease' (Frontiers in Immunology, 2023), and 'Capture-based enrichment method reveals extremely high genome-wide sequence diversity in Theileria parva' (PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 2020).