Dr. María Eugenia (Maru) Castellanos Reynosa is a Lecturer in Epidemiology and Communicable Disease Control at the College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences. 

Maru is an epidemiologist and medical microbiologist with over 13 years of experience researching infectious diseases, particularly tuberculosis, malaria and HIV.  She has a BSc in Chemical Biology (Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, Guatemala), a Master in Medical Microbiology (Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, United Kindom) and a PhD in Epidemiology (University of Georgia, United States).

Her research focuses on infectious diseases that disproportionately affect underserved populations from the Tropics. She is dedicated to advancing our knowledge of the factors that impact the burden of these diseases.  She has expertise in the data collection, analysis and implementation of epidemiological studies in low-income settings, as shown by her work in Africa and Latin America. She has maintained ongoing collaborations with multiple national and international partners in several projects related to HIV/opportunistic infections, malaria, and COVID-19.   She works actively with international partners (University of Georgia, Emory University, ISGlobal, Barcelona Institute for Global Health, US Centre for Disease Control, Universidad del Valle de Guatemala).

Her teaching excellence was acknowledged when she received a Dean’s Teaching Excellence Award (2023).  She has been responsible for coordinating and teaching four undergraduate and post-graduate subjects (370 students/year).  Her teaching philosophy embraces an integrative and research-informed pedagogy, connecting the theory learned in the classroom with practical, real-world applications.  Her commitment to innovative teaching and promoting active learning and student engagement continues to expand.  She is the project leader for a 2022/23 JCU Learning and Teaching Innovation Grant Award ($10,000).  Through this work, Maru and her team are creating a series of online interactive activities for students in TM5525: Communicable Disease Control and TM5515: Epidemiology for Public Health using actual disease outbreak scenarios from the Tropics.

Her leadership and service efforts have focused on enhancing research capacity within JCU and internationally. Within JCU, she is a CPHMVS Research and Research Education Training Committee member. She was the treasurer for the Divisional Early and Middle Career Committee (2021-2022).  She supports the JCU HDR Cohort Program and the Murtupuni Centre for Rural and Remote Health.  Internationally,  she is a member of the Advisory Committee for a Fogarty program aimed at advancing research for the prevention of childhood pneumonia.

She is a mentor for the 2023 Public Health Association of Australia National Mentoring Program and a peer reviewer for international scientific journals (e.g., PLOS One, Malaria Journal, American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, Scientific African).

Maru is a member of The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH),  the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (RSTMH) and the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD).

 Current funded projects:

1.  Choose your adventure: Using an online game to investigate disease outbreaks and improve learner engagement. Learning and Teaching Innovation Grant (Large – Category B:  Promoting active learning and student engagement) 2022/2023.  Centre for Education and Enhancement. Principal Investigator.

2. Clinical characteristics and outcomes of HIV patients co-infected with tuberculosis and histoplasmosis in an urban Latin American setting.  RSTMH's  2021 Small Grants Programme.   Funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), UK. Principal Investigator.

3.  Research capacity building for control of neglected tropical diseases: A path for sustainable societies in the tropics. This project is being provided under The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's International Relations Grant Program as part of the Council on Australia Latin America Relations (COALAR) Grant Round 2021-2022.  Principal Investigator.

PacMOSSI Consultancy (2022-present)

A consultant for the PacMOSSI consortium members at JCU, WHO and national vector-borne disease control programs in Pacific Island countries and areas (PICs).  In this role, she has directly influenced policy development by supporting the Ministries of Health in Pacific Island Countries to develop national strategic plans to combat mosquito-borne diseases.

Engagement (Media)

•  March 2023: YouTube video, COALAR project. Research capacity building for control of neglected tropical diseases: Australia and Guatemala.

• April 2023:  Press. Universidad del Valle de Guatemala:  CES participa en intercambio de experiencias científicas entre Australia y Guatemala (news in Spanish).

Teaching

• HS2402: Health Professional Research 1 (Level 2; CNS & TSV)
• TM5515: Epidemiology for Public Health (Level 5; TSV)
• TM5525: Communicable Disease Control (Level 5; TSV)
• TM5578: Emerging Public Health Threats: Navigating Systems and Responses (Level 5; TSV)

Interests

Research

• Tuberculosis, malaria, HIV, global health, infectious diseases epidemiology, diagnostics, molecular epidemiology.

Teaching

• Infectious diseases epidemiology, public health, medical microbiology, introduction to epidemiology, clinical laboratory.

Experience

• 2021 to present - Lecturer Epidemiology and Communicable Disease Control, James Cook University (Townsville, Australia)
• 2019 to 2021 - Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Georgia (Georgia, Unites States of America)
• 2014 to 2019 - Research Assistant, University of Georgia (Georgia, Unites States of America)
• 2008 to 2014 - Research Assistant, Universidad del Valle (Guatemala, Guatemala)

Research Disciplines

• Epidemiology (4202)
• Public health (4206)

Socio-Economic Objectives

• Public health (2004)
• Evaluation of health and support services (2002)

Awards

• 2023 - Teaching Excellence-Colleague' View College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Australia
• 2018 - Dissertation Completion Award, Graduate School, University of Georgia.
• 2013 - Fulbright LASPAU Faculty Development Program in the United States.
• 2011 - Top 3 Best Posters by Young Researchers. 7th European Congress on Tropical Medicine & International Health. Barcelona, Spain.
• 2008 - Honor Roll in MSc Medical Microbiology. Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and University of Liverpool.
• 2016 to 2018 - Schlumberger Foundation Faculty for the Future Program.

Memberships

• 2021 - Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
• 2020 - International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease.
• 2020 - The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
• 2019 - University of Georgia’s Beta Chi Chapter of the Delta Omega Honor Society.
• 2018 - Reviewer PLOS ONE
• 2016 - Society for Epidemiological Research

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

• Carroll S, Castellanos M, Stevenson R and Henning L (in press) Incidence and risk factors for travellers’ diarrhoea among short-term international adult travellers from high-income countries: a systematic review with meta-analysis of cohort studies. Journal of Travel Medicine,
• Castellanos Reynosa M, Caal M, Mercado D, Medina N, Pérez J, Emeto T and Arathoon E (in press) Clinical characteristics, diagnosis, treatment and outcomes of patients living with HIV and co-infected with tuberculosis and histoplasmosis: a 5-y retrospective case series. Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene,
• Nath K, Boles R, Emeto T, Adegboye O, Castellanos M, Alele F, Pearce J, Ewart B, Ward K, Lai H, Morris E, Hodges G and Irving I (2023) A comprehensive study of the epidemiology of haematological malignancies in North Queensland. Internal Medicine Journal, 53 (4). pp. 540-549
• Sekandi J, Castellanos Reynosa M, Woldu H, Kakaire R, Mutembo S and Mutanga J (2023) Patient satisfaction among persons living with HIV/AIDS and receiving antiretroviral therapy in urban Uganda: A factor analysis. PLoS ONE, 18 (2).
• van Eijk A, Stepniewska K, Hill J, Taylor S, Rogerson S, Cottrell G, Chico R, Gutman J, Tinto H, Unger H, Yanow S, Meshnick S, ter Kuile F, Mayor A, van Eijk A and Subpatent Malaria in Pregnancy Group (in press) Prevalence of and risk factors for microscopic and submicroscopic malaria infections in pregnancy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The Lancet Global Health,
• Castellanos M, Lau-Bonilla D, Moller A, Arathoon E, Samayoa B, Quinn F, Ebell M, Dobbin K and Whalen C (2022) Characterization of the Proportion of Clustered Tuberculosis Cases in Guatemala: Insights from a Molecular Epidemiology Study, 2010–2014. American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 106 (4). pp. 1173-1181
• Castellanos M, Rodas S, Juárez J, Lol J, Chanquin S, Morales Z, Vizcaino L, Smith S, Vanden Eng J, Woldu H, Lenhart A and Padilla N (2021) Evaluation of the durability of long?lasting insecticidal nets in Guatemala. Malaria Journal, 20.
• Kakaire R, Kiwanuka N, Zalwango S, Sekandi J, Quach T, Castellanos M, Quinn F and Whalen C (2021) Excess risk of tuberculosis infection among extra-household contacts of tuberculosis cases in an African city. Clinical Infectious Diseases, 73 (9). pp. e3438-e3445
• Woldu H, Zalwango S, Martinez L, Castellanos M, Kakaire R, Sekandi J, Kiwanuka N and Whalen C (2021) Defining an intermediate category of tuberculin skin test: a mixture model analysis of two high-risk populations from Kampala, Uganda. PLoS ONE, 16 (1).
• Castellanos M, Zalwango S, Kakaire R, Ebell M, Dobbin K, Sekandi J, Kiwanuka N and Whalen C (2020) Defining adequate contact for transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in an African urban environment. BMC Public Health, 20.
• Dobaño C, Bardají A, Kochar S, Kochar S, Padilla N, López M, Unger H, Ome-Kaius M, Castellanos M, Arévalo-Herrera M, Hans D, Martínez-espinosa F, Bôtto-Menezes C, Malheiros A, Desai M, Casellas A, Chitnis C, Rogerson S, Mueller I, Menéndez C and Requena P (2020) Blood cytokine, chemokine and growth factor profiling in a cohort of pregnant women from tropical countries. Cytokine, 125. pp. 1-11
• Dobaño C, Bardají A, Arévalo-Herrera M, Martínez-Espinosa F, Bôtto-Menezes C, Padilla N, Menegon M, Kochar S, Kochar S, Unger H, Ome-Kaius M, Rosanas-Urgell A, Malheiros A, Castellanos M, Hans D, Desai M, Casellas A, Chitnis C, Severini C, Mueller I, Rogerson S, Menéndez C and Requena P (2020) Cytokine signatures of plasmodium vivax infection during pregnancy and delivery outcomes. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 14 (5).

More

ResearchOnline@JCU stores 29+ research outputs authored by Dr Maria Castellanos Reynosa from 2012 onwards.

Current and recent Research Funding to JCU is shown by funding source and project.

Advisory Accreditation: I can be on your Advisory Panel as a Primary or Secondary Advisor.

These Higher Degree Research projects are either current or by students who have completed their studies within the past 5 years at JCU. Linked titles show theses available within ResearchOnline@JCU.

Current

• International Travel and medical events - an Australian travelinsurance perspective in the Covid-19 era (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Climate change and the Incidence of Bacteraemia and Antimicrobial Resistance from Foodborne Pathogens in Queensland, Australia (PhD , Secondary Advisor)

The map shows research collaborations by institution from the past 7 years.
Note: Map points are indicative of the countries or states that institutions are associated with.