Rafael Pimenta

My scientific career so far has been mainly focused parasite and vector interactions. In the past I have had the opportunity to work on a variety of diseases including, malaria, leishmaniasis, arboviruses and schistosomiasis. Presently my focus is on the studying the interactions between the fly Glossina morsitans and the trypanosome parasite, which causes human African trypanosomiasis. More specifically, I am investigating the role of fly micro RNA and how an infected fly can alter the expression of these micro RNAs due to parasite presence. With this study I intend to identify possible proteins that are targeted by micro RNAs and what pathways are being affected in the infected fly.