| Nina Krasavin | |||||
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Email: krasavin@illinois.edu Title: Molecular biology research technician/Laboratory manager
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| Activities | I have worked in the Medical Entomology Program at the Center for Economic Entomology Staff for over 20 years as both a laboratory technician and laboratory manager. My primary management and research duties include directing, coordinating, and training laboratory technicians and hourly employees in mosquito rearing and screening field collected mosquito pools for the presence of arboviruses (particularly St. Louis encephalitis virus, SLEV, and West Nile virus, WNV). Various molecular diagnostic techniques, particularly the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), are used to detect mosquito-borne pathogens. We are planning to expand our diagnostic capabilities to include isolation of arboviruses in cell culture, plaque reduction neutralization tests (PRNT) for animal antibodies to arboviruses, and a PCR technique called Taqman. These techniques will allow us to better study the interaction of vectors and hosts. In addition to the diagnostic research, I am responsible for purchasing and budget management, hiring and training academic hourly employees and visitors on RT-PCR, supervising academic hourly and technical employees, procurement of supplies, and maintenance of adequate inventory for the laboratory and project needs. |
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| Research |
Over the past 20 years, I have been involved in a variety of projects including mosquito pathogens, measuring mosquito fitness, cellular fatty acids analysis of bacteria, arbovirus detection by PCR, isozyme characterization by polyactylamide gel electrophoresis, and studying influence of UVB on mosquitoes. For the past 6 years, my main "mosquito season" work has been the detection of SLEV and WNV. Each spring and summer, field specimens from throughout Illinois are brought into the laboratory for studies on mosquito ecology and disease transmission, which have to be screened for arboviruses. In addition, we work jointly with several mosquito abatement districts and public health departments to conduct arbovirus surveillance in mosquitoes. The samples that come into the lab for analysis have to cataloged, ground, and processed for various PCR and antibody tests. These duties occupy the bulk of the spring and summer. Both SLEV and WNV are often detected early in the spring in mosquitoes, which represents the start of the natural cycle in animal hosts like birds. In mid-July and August these viruses can be amplified in both number of infected hosts and species until it spills over into transmission to domestic animals, like horses, and humans. Detecting the arbovirus in mosquitoes and antibodies in various hosts is critical for understanding the disease transmission cycle. Because we routinely conduct surveillance for SLEV and WNV, many groups visit our laboratory to learn the technique. We have trained people in RT-PCR techniques from Florida, Texas, Slovenia, South Africa, and Pakistan. In addition, we presented a wet lab workshop at two of the annual meetings of the American Mosquito Control Association, in order to reach a diverse audience interested in arbovirus surveillance. |
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| Recognition | 2006 Chief's Award for Outstanding Service 15 year service recognition from the Illinois Natural History Survey |
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| Professional affiliations |
Secretary-Treasurer for the Illinois Mosquito Control Association. Member. American Mosquito Control Association. Member. Illinois Mosquito Control Association. Assisted Dr. R. J. Novak (President of AMCA) in preparing the Schedule of Abstracts and Titles for 61st Annual Meeting of the American Mosquito Control Association, 1995 Assisted with the development of the 46th Annual Illinois Mosquito & Vector Control Association Conference, November 2000. |
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| Selected publications |
Gu WD. Lampman R. Krasavin N. Berry R. Novak R. Spatio-temporal analyses of West Nile virus transmission in Culex mosquitoes in Northern Illinois, USA, 2004. Vector Borne & Zoonotic Diseases. 6(1):91-98, 2006 Spr. Lampman RL, Krasavin NM, Szyska M, et al. A comparison of two West Nile virus detection assays (Taqman reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and VecTest antigen assay) during three consecutive outbreaks in northern Illinois. J. of American Mosquito Control Assoc., 2006; 22 (1): 76-86. Richard Lampman, Michael Slamecka, Nina Krasavin, Kenneth Kunkel, and Robert Novak. 2006. Culex population Dynamics and West Nile virus transmission in East-Central Illinois. J. of American Mosquito Control Assoc., Sept. 2006; 22(3):390-400. Lampman, Krasavin, Novak, et al. Large scale comparison of two West Nile virus detection methods in Illinois. J. Am. Mosq. Control Assoc., completing text, need comparison of cycle thresholds for completion of data. Lampman, Krasavin, Novak, et al. Regional variation in Culex West Nile virus infection rates. J. Med. Entomol. Vodkin, M.H., Krasavin, N.M., Borrageiro, L.A., and Novak, R.J., 2002. Comparison of a commercial dot blot ELISA to the RT-PCR for detecting St. Louis encephalitis. The Annals of Medical Entomology, 10:14-19. Lampman, Richard, Nina Krasavin, Patrick Halbig, Adam Ringia, Marshall Van de Wyngaerde, Hyun-Young Koo, and Robert Novak. 2003. West Nile Virus in Illinois. Illinois Natural History Survey Reports, Winter 2003, No. 374, p. 1 and p. 8. Vodkin, M. H., R. L. Lampman, N. M. Krasavin, and R. J. Novak. 2001. SLE and the City. Wingbeats. Vodkin, M. H., N. M. Krasavin, L. A. Borrageiro, and R. J. Novak. 2001 Comparison on a commercial dot blot elisa to the RT-PCR for detecting St. Louis Encephalitis Virus. The Annals of Medical Entomology, 10:14-19. I was also the primary technician on the following two papers: Relationship between wing length and dry weight of mosquitoes. Siegel J. P., R. J. Novak, W. G. Ruesink. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association 10(2 PART 1): 186-196 1994. Statistical appraisal of the weight-wing length relationship of mosquitoes. Siegel J. P., R. J. Novak, R. L. Lampman, B. A. Steinly. Journal Of Medical Entomology 29(4): 711-714 1992. |
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| Program Affiliates |
Richard Lampman Osee Sanogo |
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| Professional society involvement and activities |
Assisting Dr. R. J. Novak (President of AMCA) in preparing the Schedule of Abstracts and Titles for 61st Annual Meeting of the American Mosquito Control Association, 1995. "Detecting SLEV by RT-PCR" Vodkin and Krasavin, Instructor and organizer in a workshop held in Portland, Oregon, 1995. "PCR Detection of Flaviviruses". Instructor and organizer in a workshop held in Norfolk VA, AMCA meeting, 1996. Instructor for PCR Seminar at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the American Mosquito Control Association, March 1997, Salt Lake City, UT. "Processing Mosquitoes for Arbovirus Surveillance", Krasavin N. M., Vodkin M. H., and Novak R. J., (45th Annual Illinois Mosquito & Vector Control Association, November 1999, Rockford, IL). Surveillance for St.Louis encephalitis virus in Illinois, Vodkin M. H., Krasavin N. M., and Novak R.J., (45th Annual Illinois Mosquito & Vector Control Association, November 1999, Rockford, IL). Assisting Dr. R Lampman for the development of the 46th Annual Illinois Mosquito & Vector Control Association, November 2000. Use of a commercial dot blot Elisa to dwtwct SLEV, Krasavin N. M., Vodkin M. H. and Novak R. J. (46th Annual Illinois Mosquito & Vector Control Association, November 2000. |
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| Education | Master, Economics and Management, Personnel Management School, Leningrad USSR, 1983 MS, Engineering, Mining Institute, Leningrad, USSR, 1976 | ||||
Illinois Natural History Survey - University of Illinois
INRS State Scientific Surveys
