ULV Professor Co-Edits International Special Issue on Vector–Pathogen Interactions and Biodiversity Conservation

ULV Professor Co-Edits International Special Issue on Vector-Pathogen Interactions and Biodiversity Conservation

Dr. Víctor D. Carmona-Galindo, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of La Verne, is co-editing a new international special issue in the open-access journal Conservation (MDPI), in collaboration with his sister, Dr. Anna M. Groat-Carmona, a Fulbright alumna and Assistant Professor of Biology at the University of Washington Tacoma.

The special issue, titled "Vector-Pathogen Interactions in a Changing World: Implications for Biodiversity and Conservation", invites submissions that explore how diseases transmitted by vectors such as mosquitoes, ticks, and kissing bugs intersect with biodiversity loss, ecosystem resilience, and public health-particularly in under-resourced or dynamic regions of the Global South.

"Our goal is to amplify interdisciplinary, field-based, and underrepresented perspectives in conservation and global health research," said Dr. Carmona-Galindo, whose Fulbright work in El Salvador focused on entomological surveillance and vector ecology in fragmented tropical forests. "We see this special issue as a platform for rising scholars-especially those in Central America, Africa, and South Asia-who are leading research on the frontlines of climate and health challenges."

The issue welcomes research that:

Investigates vector-host-pathogen systems in ecological or conservation contexts
Analyzes the effects of land-use change, urbanization, or climate disruption on disease transmission
Applies molecular, field-based, or One Health frameworks
Highlights community-engaged or policy-relevant strategies

Dr. Carmona-Galindo and Dr. Groat-Carmona are offering mentorship opportunities to students and early-career scientists interested in publishing. They have also begun assembling a U.S.-Central America research network to support a forthcoming five-year grant proposal to the National Science Foundation (NSF-IRES), which will expand surveillance efforts on vector-borne diseases and train the next generation of field biologists.

The Conservation special issue is now accepting manuscripts on a rolling basis, with a final deadline of February 2, 2026.

For more information or to connect with the guest editors, please contact Dr. Víctor Carmona at vcarmona@laverne.edu.