Dr. Maria Murgia
Credentials: Purdue University
Position title: Postdoc
Dr. Murgia is a postdoctoral researcher in the Vector Biology program in the Department of Entomology at Purdue University. She earned a Ph.D. in Virology/Infectious Diseases from The Ohio State University in 2012. Subsequently, she moved to Kansas State University, where she worked as a postdoctoral researcher with high consequence animal infectious pathogens under Biosafety Level 3 containment facilities. She joined Dr. Hill’s Vector Biology program at Purdue as a postdoctoral researcher in 2018. She was the lead scientist of the Tick Insiders Project, responsible for analyzing the microbiome carried by Indiana ticks. She gained extensive experience developing assays to discover and test candidate active ingredients against ticks and mosquitoes. She is a key researcher in a Department of Defense-funded project to assess the efficacy of the Personal Insect Repellent Kit (PIRK) against ticks. She is also a key researcher in a Midwest Center of Excellence for Vector-borne Disease-funded project evaluating the efficacy of new acaricides in the laboratory and field against Ixodes scapularis.