Dissertation Defense: Cross scale assessment of environmental variation on the rabies virus reservoir Desmodus rotundus

Mentor

Luis E. Escobar, Ph.D., Professor, Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics

Committee Members

• Julia Gohlke, Ph.D., Professor, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine
• Cassidy Rist, DVM, MPH, DACVPM, Associate Director, Center for Public and Corporate Veterinary Medicine
• Eric Hallerman, Ph.D., Professor, College of Natural Resources and Environment
• Andrea Bertke, Ph.D., Associate Professor, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine

Publications

• Van de Vuurst, P. Hallerman, E., Bertke, A. & Escobar, LE. (2024). Population and landscape genetics of vampire bats in Colombia.

• Van de Vuurst, P. Qiao, H. Soler-Tovar, D, Escobar, LE (2023). Climate change linked to vampire bat expansion and pathogen-spillover risk. Ecography. Published October 2023.

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Alexander, KA (2023). Identifying social behaviors related to disease transmission of Mycobacterium mungi in Banded Mongoose from accelerometer data. Ecological Solutions and Evidence. Published July 2023.

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Escobar, LE. (2023). Climate change and infectious disease: A review of evidence and trends. Infectious Diseases of Poverty. Published May 2023.

• Magalhães, A.R. Codeço, C.T., Svenning, J.C., Escobar, L.E., Van de Vuurst, P. and Gonçalves-Souza, T. (2023). Neglected tropical diseases risk correlates with poverty and early ecosystem destruction. Infectious Diseases of Poverty. Published March 2023.

• Escobar, LE, Velasco-Villa, A, Satheshkumar, PS, Nakazawa, Y, & Van de Vuurst, P. (2023). Revealing the complexity of rabies “spillover transmission”: A commentary. Infectious Diseases of Poverty. Published February 2023.

• Van de Vuurst, P. Diaz, M. Rodriguez-San Pedro, A. Allendes, J.L. Brown, N. Gutierrez, J.D. Zarza, H. Oliveira, S. Cárdenas-Canales, E. Barquez, R. Escobar, L.E. (2022). A database of common vampire bat reports. Scientific Data. Published February 2022.

• Van de Vuurst, P., Moore, SA, Isaac, EJ, Ibrahim, YC, Wolf, TM, and Escobar, LE (2021). Reconstructing landscapes of ungulate predation. Current Zoology. Published August 2021.

• Van de Vuurst, P. and Escobar, LE. Perspective: Climate change and the relocation of Indonesia’s capital to Borneo. (2020). Frontiers in Earth Science. Published March 2020.

Submitted
• Van de Vuurst, P., Rojas-Serano, Z., Soler-Tovar, D. Madina-Rodriguez, A., Osejo-Varona, A., & Escobar, LE. (2024). Rabies spillover risk from vampire bats to livestock in Colombia. Revista Cordoba. Submitted September 2024.

• Van de Vuurst, P., Gohlke, JM., & Escobar, LE. (2024). Vampire bats, emerging disease, and future climate change. Scientific Reports. Submitted October 2024. Talty, C. E., Murphy, S., Desai, S., & VandeVord, P. (2024). Manifestation of chronic depression-like behavior and glutamatergic signaling alterations in female rats following traumatic brain injury. Journal of Neurotrauma.
Norris, C., Murphy, S. F., Talty, C.-E., & Vandevord, P. J. (2024). Spatial intracranial pressure fields driven by blast overpressure in rats. Annals of Biomedical Engineering, 1-14.

Presentations

Invited Guest Lectures

• Kurry, C. & Van de Vuurst, P. (2024). WSPID Pediatric Infectious Diseases in the Age of Climate Change: Research Trends and Mitigation Strategies. World Society of Pediatric Infectious Disease Webinar, Virtual Webinar.

• Van de Vuurst, P. (2024). Vampire Bats and One Health: How ecologists play a role in disease research. Howell-McLaughlin Annual Lecture Series, Samford University, Birmingham, AL.

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Escobar, L.E. (2023). Climate Change and Neglected Tropical Disease: A review of evidences and research trends. International Society for Neglected Tropical Diseases Climate and Health Conference. Virtual Plenary Session.

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Escobar, L.E. (2023). Climate Change and Infectious Diseases. 13th World Society of Pediatric Infectious Diseases Conference, Durban, South Africa.

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Shew, A. (2023). Environmental Bioethics and Climate Change. Graduate lecture in “Issues in Bioethics”, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Telionis, A. (2023). Disease Emergence and Spillover Risks. Graduate lecture in “Infectious Disease Epidemiology”, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.

• Van de Vuurst, P. (2023). Logistic Regression in Wildlife Epidemiology. Undergraduate lecture in “Wildlife Epidemiology”, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.

• Van de Vuurst, P. (2023). Using and Cleaning Data From GBIF. Graduate lecture in “Advanced Biogeography and Macroecology”, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.

• Van de Vuurst, P. (2022). Climate Change, sinking cities, and areas of risk: The implications of Indonesia's capital transition. Presented at Munich Technical University Environmental Lecture Series. Virtual Lecture.

• Shew, A. & Van de Vuurst, P. (2022). Disability and Environmentalism. Presented: Environmental Coalition Meeting, Virginia Tech. Blacksburg, VA.

• Theberg, K., Van de Vuurst, P., McPhail, D., Holcombe, B., & Dorsey, S. (2022). How the Fish & Wildlife Graduate Student Association is Advancing Diversity. Presented: Virginia Tech Annual Advancing Diversity Gathering. Blacksburg, VA.

• Van de Vuurst, P. (2021). Rabies Virus in Wildlife. Guest lecture presented for the Virginia Cooperative Extension educational outreach program. Virtual Lecture.

Scientific Presentations

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Luis Escobar. (2024). Climate Change and Infectious Diseases: A Review of Evidence. Presented: ADA Innovate International Conference on the Greenhouse Effect and Climate Change: 200 Years since Joseph Fourier, Cardiff, United Kingdom. (Talk)

• Van de Vuurst, P., Rist, C., Medina-Rodriguez, T., Osejo-Varona, A.F., & Escobar, L.E. (2024). Identifying key factors that facilitate rabies virus spillover from bats to cattle in Colombia. Presented: International Biogeographic Society Biennial International Conference 2024, Prague, Czechia. (Poster)

• Van de Vuurst, P., Rist, C., Medina-Rodriguez, T., Osejo-Varona, A.F., & Escobar, L.E. (2023). Identifying key factors that facilitate rabies virus spillover from bats to cattle in Colombia. Presented: Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-Borne Pathogens Annual Research Symposium 2023. Blacksburg, Virginia. (Poster)

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Escobar, L.E. (2023). Climate Change and Infectious Disease: A Review of Evidence. Presented: Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health Annual Research Symposium 2023. Roanoke, Virginia. (Poster)

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Escobar, L.E. (2022). Research Equity in Climate Change and Disease Research. Presented: Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-Borne Pathogens Annual Research Symposium 2022. Blacksburg, Virginia. (Talk)

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Escobar, L.E. (2022). Defining “Spillover Transmission” and Future Avenues of Research. Presented: Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-Borne Pathogens Annual Research Symposium 2022. Blacksburg, Virginia. (Talk)

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Escobar, L.E. (2022). Social Justice and Infectious Disease Research: We Are Not There Yet. Presented: Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases International Conference. Atlanta, Georgia. (Poster)

• Van de Vuurst, P. Qiao, H., and & Escobar, L.E. (2022). Climate change effects on wildlife-disease reservoirs: The emblematic case of wildlife rabies. Presented: The Wildlife Society of Virginia 2022 Annual Meeting. Waynesboro, Virginia. (Talk)

• Van de Vuurst, P. & Soler-Tovar, D. (2021). An updated database of common vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) occurrence data for ecological, public health, and epidemiological research. Presented: XXXII Rabies in the Americas Annual Conference Poster Contest, Brazil. (Poster)

• Van de Vuurst, P., Qiao, H., & Escobar, L.E. (2021). Resolving the Distributional Ecology of Desmodus rotundus Under Climate Change. Presented: XXXII Rabies in the Americas Annual Conference. Brazil. (Poster)

Honors and Awards

• 2024 Sally Bohland Award for Innovative Service
• Roanoke Outreach Flip the Fair Scientific Communication first place winner: Results 2023
• Excellence in Oral Presentation Award: Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-Borne Pathogens Annual Research Symposium 2022

Service

• Climate Justice Sub-Committee member and Graduate Student Advisor (2022-present), Virginia Tech.
• Fish and Wildlife Graduate Student Association Graduate Student Senate Representative (2022-2023), Virginia Tech.
• Fish and Wildlife Graduate Student Association Outreach Committee founding member (2021-present), Virginia Tech.
• Roanoke Graduate Student Association outreach committee member (2021-Present), Virginia Tech.
• Personal Transportation Device Working Group: Graduate Representative (2022-2023), Virginia Tech.
• Fish and Wildlife Graduate Student Association Sub-committee member (2020-present) and Co-chair on Diversity Equity and Inclusion (2020-2022), Graduate and Professional Student Senate Representative (2022-2023), Virginia Tech.
• Disability Alliance and Caucus at Virginia Tech: Active student member and liaison for the college of natural resources and environment. Vice President 2021-2022, Treasurer 2023-2024.