I am a vector biologist specialising in vector-borne diseases and host–pathogen interactions. My early work at ICIPE (Nairobi) focused on studying the feeding preferences of wild-caught mosquitoes by analysing their blood meals and viral infection status, as well as investigating tick-borne pathogens in pastoral communities across Kenya. During a research stay in Berlin, I examined the transcriptomic responses of Amblyomma ticks to Ehrlichia ruminantium, the pathogen responsible for heartwater disease in livestock. Currently, I am engaged in a BBSRC-funded project at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM), researching the use of Wolbachia as a biological control agent in Culex mosquitoes and its antiviral effects against Usutu and West Nile viruses. My developing research interest focuses on how gut microbiomes impact mosquito mating behaviour, especially the role of certain bacterial communities in mating success. I aim to create innovative, probiotic-based strategies to improve the efficacy of sterile males in mosquito control programmes, with potential applications in disease-endemic areas. https://www.lstmed.ac.uk/research/research-career-progression/director%E2%80%99s-catalyst-fund/david-omondi-ouma 

At the LSTM, I contribute to teaching in medical entomology and vector biology, emphasising how insect microbiomes and symbiotic microorganisms influence mosquito physiology, behaviour, and pathogen transmission and how these interactions can be leveraged to create novel vector control strategies.