Elizabeth McGraw

Elizabeth McGraw
Born
Elizabeth Ann McGraw
Other nameBeth McGraw
EducationUniversity of Michigan–Flint (BS)
Pennsylvania State University (PhD)
Alma materUniversity of Michigan–Flint
Pennsylvania State University
Known forResearch on Wolbachia, mosquitoes, and mosquito-borne diseases
Scientific career
FieldsEntomology
Vector biology
Infectious disease dynamics
Symbiosis
Evolution
Wolbachia
WorkplacesPennsylvania State University
Monash University
University of Queensland
ThesisMolecular evolution of invasive bacterial pathogens (1998)

Elizabeth "Beth" McGraw is a biologist and entomologist. She is a professor of entomology and head of the Department of Biology at the Pennsylvania State University. Her research focuses on mosquito vector biology, Wolbachia–host interactions, and vector-borne diseases. She was elected a Fellow of the American Society for Microbiology.

Early life and education

McGraw received a Bachelor of Science with honours in biology from the University of Michigan–Flint in 1993. She completed a Ph.D. in biology at the Pennsylvania State University in 1998.

Career

Following her doctoral studies, McGraw held postdoctoral appointments at Yale School of Medicine from 1999 to 2001 and at the University of Queensland from 2001 to 2002. At Yale, she was initially a National Institutes of Health postdoctoral trainee. In 2002, McGraw joined the University of Queensland as an assistant professor in genetics.

McGraw joined the Monash University School of Biological Sciences in 2011 as a Larkins Fellow. She became a professor in 2017.

In 2017, McGraw joined Pennsylvania State University as a professor of entomology. She served as director of the Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics from 2018 to 2021. In 2021, she became head of the university's Department of Biology.

Research contributions

McGraw's research has focused on vector biology, host–microbe interactions, evolutionary genetics, and infectious disease dynamics. Her early work examined the evolution of mutualism and the biology of the endosymbiont bacterium Wolbachia, including its interactions with insect hosts.

She has extensively studied Wolbachia in mosquitoes, particularly its role in limiting the replication of pathogens and its potential use in biological control strategies for mosquito-borne diseases. Her research has examined the mechanisms and evolutionary consequences of Wolbachia-mediated pathogen blocking in Aedes aegypti, including the effects of mosquito genetic variation, bacterial strain, and environmental conditions on the inhibition of dengue virus and other arboviruses.

McGraw has also studied the genetics and ecology of mosquito-borne disease transmission, including dengue and chikungunya. Her work has addressed how temperature, thermal stress, mosquito population differences, and viral adaptation may influence mosquito competence and the geographic distribution of vector-borne diseases. Her research has examined the ability of Wolbachia to inhibit viral replication in mosquitoes. She has also investigated whether dengue virus can develop resistance to Wolbachia-mediated blocking and how viral exposure to Wolbachia affects infection and replication in mosquito cells.

At Pennsylvania State University, McGraw's research has also included pathogen surveillance through wastewater monitoring. This work has examined the use of wastewater data to track respiratory and enteric viruses in university and community settings.

Awards and honors

Selected publications

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Elizabeth McGraw named head of Department of Biology". Penn State University. 25 February 2021.
  2. ↑ McGraw, Elizabeth Ann (1998). Molecular evolution of invasive bacterial pathogens (PhD thesis). Pennsylvania State University. OCLC 299248804. ProQuest 304463293.
  3. 1 2 "Four new faculty members bring expertise to Penn State's entomology department". Penn State University. 23 February 2018.
  4. ↑ "Funding assists fight against dengue fever". The University of Queensland. 14 April 2010.
  5. ↑ "Tiny things that matter: a story of viruses, mosquito spit and perseverance". Monash University.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "McGraw elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology". Penn State University. Retrieved 2023-02-28.
  7. ↑ McGraw EA, O'Neill SL (1999). "Evolution of Wolbachia pipientis transmission dynamics in insects". Trends in Microbiology. 7 (7): 297–302. doi:10.1016/S0966-842X(99)01531-0. PMID 10390640.
  8. ↑ McGraw EA, Merritt DJ, Droller JN, O'Neill SL (2002). "Wolbachia density and virulence attenuation after transfer into a novel host". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 99 (5): 2918–2923. doi:10.1073/pnas.052466499. PMC 122448. PMID 11880639.
  9. ↑ Ford SA, Albert I, Allen SL, Chenoweth SF, Jones M, Koh C, Sebastian A, Sigle LT, McGraw EA (2020). "Artificial selection finds new hypotheses for the mechanism of Wolbachia-mediated dengue blocking in mosquitoes". Frontiers in Microbiology. 11: 1456. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2020.01456. PMC 7358395.
  10. 1 2 Ser SL, Dennington NL, Engler HI, Harris ML, Jones MJ, Avila FW, Caragata EP, Hoffmann AA, Maciel de Freitas R, McGraw EA (2026). "Interactions between mosquito genetic background and Wolbachia strain affect dengue virus blocking and fitness in South American populations of Aedes aegypti". PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 20 (5) e0014403. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0014403.
  11. 1 2 Ye YH, Carrasco AM, Dong Y, Sgrò CM, McGraw EA (2016). "The effect of temperature on Wolbachia-mediated dengue virus blocking in Aedes aegypti". The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 94 (4): 812–819. doi:10.4269/ajtmh.15-0801. PMC 4824223. PMID 26856916.
  12. ↑ Novelo M, Dutra HL, Metz HC, Hall MJ, Sigle LT, Frentiu FD, Allen SL, Chenoweth SF, McGraw EA (2023). "Dengue and chikungunya virus loads in the mosquito Aedes aegypti are determined by distinct genetic architectures". PLOS Pathogens. 19 (4) e1011307. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1011307. PMID 37043515.
  13. ↑ Ware-Gilmore F, Jones MJ, Mejia AJ, Dennington NL, Audsley MD, Hall MD, Sgrò CM, Buckley T, Anand GS, Jose J, McGraw EA (2025). "Evolution and adaptation of dengue virus in response to high temperature passaging in mosquito cells". Virus Evolution. 11 veaf016. doi:10.1093/ve/veaf016. PMC 12054504. PMID 40330315.
  14. 1 2 "Combating mosquito-borne diseases with bacteria". psu.edu. Retrieved 2023-02-28.
  15. ↑ "Global warming may limit spread of dengue fever, new research finds". Penn State University. Retrieved 2023-02-28.
  16. ↑ Koh C, Audsley MD, Di Giallonardo F, Kerton EJ, Young PR, Holmes EC, McGraw EA (2019). "Sustained Wolbachia-mediated blocking of dengue virus isolates following serial passaging in Aedes aegypti cell culture". Virus Evolution. 5 (1) vez012. doi:10.1093/ve/vez012. PMC 6555872.
  17. 1 2 Jones MJ, Ibrahim R, Clark S, Brooks YM, Preisendanz HE, Richard TL, Read AF, Robinson CJ, Noorali S, Shreve MJ, Dennington NL, Silverman JD, Van Oost C, McGraw EA (2025). "Wastewater surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 and influenza in a dynamic university community: understanding how wastewater measurements correspond to reported cases". Science of the Total Environment. 1000 180377. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.180377. PMID 40912224.
  18. ↑ McGinnis S, Negrón E, Cesari N, Brooks YM, Jones MJ, McGraw EA, Fidler BD, Zwolenik K, Lund H (2026). "Norovirus wastewater monitoring during a community outbreak investigation in Pennsylvania". Journal of Water and Health. doi:10.2166/wh.2026.034.
  19. ↑ "Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Microbial Biology for FY 2000". Penn State.
  20. ↑ "Funding assists fight against dengue fever". The University of Queensland. 14 April 2010.
  21. ↑ "Past GSA award winners". Genetics Society of AustralAsia.
  22. ↑ "Eureka! Monash scientists take home two prizes". Monash University. 5 September 2013.
  23. ↑ "65 Fellows Elected into the American Academy of Microbiology". American Society for Microbiology. 15 February 2023.
  24. ↑ Luciano A Moreira; Iñaki Iturbe-Ormaetxe; Jason A Jeffery; et al. (2009). "A Wolbachia symbiont in Aedes aegypti limits infection with dengue, Chikungunya, and Plasmodium". Cell. 139 (7): 1268–1278. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2009.11.042. PMID 20064373. Wikidata Q29616261.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) {{Cite Q}}: Missing first/last names in Wikidata for Luciano A Moreira, Iñaki Iturbe-Ormaetxe, Jason A Jeffery (help)
  25. ↑ Hoffmann AA; Montgomery BL; Popovici J; et al. (2011). "Successful establishment of Wolbachia in Aedes populations to suppress dengue transmission". Nature. 476 (7361): 454–7. doi:10.1038/nature10356. PMID 21866160. Wikidata Q29615114. {{Cite Q}}: Missing first/last names in Wikidata for Hoffmann AA, Montgomery BL, Popovici J (help)
  26. ↑ Wu, Martin; Sun, Ling V; Vamathevan, Jessica; et al. (2004). "Phylogenomics of the reproductive parasite Wolbachia pipientis wMel: a streamlined genome overrun by mobile genetic elements". PLOS Biology. 2 (3): E69. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.0020069. PMC 368164. PMID 15024419. Wikidata Q21563646.