Field Genomics Workshop
Ecuador 2024
Landscape

Museums and Emerging Pathogens in the Americas (MEPA): Field+Genomics Workshop At-A-Glance:

  • đź“… Timing: October 28 - November 6th, 2024
  • ⏳ Duration: 9 days
  • 🗣️ Language: Primarily English (Spanish assistance provided)
  • đź“Ť Location: Reserva Otongachi (~2hrs outside of Quito, Ecuador)
  • đź“… Application Deadline: October 2, 2024
  • đź’µ Program Fee: Food, lodging, and travel sponsored for Latin American Participants.

Museums and Emerging Pathogens in the Americas (MEPA) is a virtual Community of Practice and a branch of Project ECHO (Extensions for Community Healthcare Outcomes) that aims to develop robust connections between natural history museum biorepositories and biomedical initiatives across the Americas. Its mission is to improve the sustainability, rigor, and replicability of pathogen surveillance in wild animals.

In collaboration with QCAZ (the Museum of Zoology of the Pontificia Universidad CatĂłlica del Ecuador [PUCE]) and CISeAL (Center for Health Research in Latin America, PUCE), MEPA lead a Field+Genomics Workshop in Ecuador in 2024. The workshop trained participants from diverse countries, backgrounds, and career stages in voucher-backed field surveillance and holistic preservation of mammalian host specimens. Participants conducted field-based surveillance of small mammals, perform DNA extractions, library preparation, Nanopore Adaptive Sampling, and basic bioinformatics in the field.


Workshop Section Descriptions

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Organizers and Instructors

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Jocelyn Colella, PhD

Jocelyn Colella, PhD

Curator of Mammals at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute and Assistant Professor in the Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Department. Evolutionary genomicist • MEPA Co-founder

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Joseph Cook, PhD

Curator of Mammals at the Museum of Southwestern Biology and Distinguished Professor of Biology at the University of New Mexico. Conservationist • MEPA co-founder

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Alejandra Camacho, PhD

Mammal Collection Manager at Museo de Zoología (QCAZ), Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador. Mammalogist • MEPA organizational team member

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Carlos Carrion Bonilla, PhD

Associate Researcher at the Museum of Southwestern Biology, University of New Mexico and Museo de ZoologĂ­a (QCAZ), Pontificia Universidad CatĂłlica del Ecuador.
Chiropter-ologist • Field biologist

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Mackenzie Grover

Doctoral student in the Colella Lab at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute.
Parasitologist • MEPA Member

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John Dunnum, PhD

Mammal Collection Manager at the Museum of Southwestern Biology, University of New Mexico. Mammalogist • MEPA Member

Marlon Cobos

Marlon Cobos, PhD


Postdoctoral Researcher in the Colella Lab at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute.
Disease ecologist • MEPA member

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Santiago Burneo, PhD

Curator of Mammals at Museo de ZoologĂ­a (QCAZ), Pontificia Universidad CatĂłlica del Ecuador.
Mammalogist • MEPA member

Ben Wiens

Ben Wiens

Doctoral Candidate in the Colella Lab at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute.
Evolutionary genomicist • MEPA member

Alex Hey

Alex Hey

Masters student in the Colella Lab at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute.
Wildlife biologist • MEPA member

Collaborating Institutions


Organizational Support