Georgetown Alumnus Leads Global Study on Dengue-Carrying Mosquito

Jacob Crawford (C’03), a Georgetown alumnus and researcher at Google’s Debug Project, is tackling one of the world’s most dangerous disease vectors: Aedes aegypti, the mosquito responsible for spreading dengue, Zika, and chikungunya. 

Working alongside his former mentor, Professor Peter Armbruster, the Davis Family Distinguished Professor in the College of Arts & Sciences, Crawford co-led an international team that sequenced the genomes of over 1,200 mosquitoes from 74 locations worldwide. Their findings, recently published in Science, trace how Aedes aegypti evolved from feeding on wild animals in African forests to biting humans and spreading disease across the globe.

The research shows that the mosquito’s global spread was likely through human transport during the Atlantic slave trade and led to adaptations that made it highly specialized for urban environments and more resistant to insecticides. With dengue transmission now 50 to 100 times higher than 50 years ago, this work provides critical genomic insights that may guide new mosquito control strategies.

Crawford hopes the data will accelerate efforts like Google’s Debug Project, which uses sterile-mosquito releases to curb disease transmission. Reflecting on their collaboration, Armbruster called the partnership “an exceptional accomplishment” and praised Crawford’s “cutting-edge scientific leadership.”