Dr Ellie Sherrard-Smith

Senior Lecturer in Epidemiology

Ellie joined LSTM as a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow in October 2024 after degrees at Cardiff University and post doctoral positions at Public Health England and Imperial College London. Ellie is an editor for the journal Parasites and Vectors, supports IVCC as an advisor on modelling questions, and sits on the Advisory Board for Project Bite and EASAC - projects looking at novel vector control interventions in malaria endemic settings. Ellie aims to deliver a sustainable framework for malaria vector control that holds environmental health at its core. Ellie has produced bespoke statistical approaches to modelling malaria transmission to assess synergistic malaria vaccines. She developed the transmission model malariasimulation (https://mrc-ide.github.io/malariasimulation/) to include several novel interventions or interventions deployed in new ways: work includes re-assessing critical metrics of malaria risk contributing to understanding of residual transmission, seasonality and data uncertainty. This work is the basis behind the Malaria INtervention Tool (MINT: https://mint.dide.ic.ac.uk/) that is a freely available webtool to help explore the potential impact of malaria vector control across different socioecological scenarios. Ellie collaborates on projects with colleagues in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mozambique, Malawi, Tanzania and Uganda. Ellie has a keen interest in ecology and continues to work to characterise novel vector control strategies with this focus. Ellie's work has contributed to policy and decision making for the prevention of malaria.

Selected publications

  • Okumu F, et al. 2025. Elevating Larval Source Management as a Key Strategy for Controlling Malaria and Other Vector-Borne Diseases in Africa. Parasites & Vectors DOI: 10.1186/s13071-024-06621-x

    Churcher TS, et al. 2024. Model projections of the epidemiological benefit of pyrethroid-pyrrole insecticide treated nets against malaria. The Lancet Global Health Accepted: 25 July 2024

    Okiring J, et al. 2024. LLIN Evaluation in Uganda Project (LLINEUP): modelling the impact of COVID-19-related disruptions on delivery of long-lasting insecticidal nets on malaria indicators in Uganda. Malaria Journal 23. 180. DOI: 10.1186/s12936-024-05008-8

    Challenger J, et al. 2023. Assessing the variability in experimental hut trials evaluating insecticide-treated nets against malaria vectors. Current Research in Parasitology & Vector-Borne Diseases 3. 1-11. ISSN 2667-114X

    Whittaker C, et al. 2023. Seasonal dynamics of Anopheles stephensi and its implications for mosquito detection and emergent malaria control in the Horn of Africa. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of USA 120. 1-9. ISSN: 0027-8424

    Unwin H, et al. 2023. Quantifying the direct and indirect protection provided by insecticide treated bed nets against malaria. Nature Communications 14. 1-12. ISSN: 2041-1723

    Gansané A, et al. 2022. Design and methods for a quasi-experimental pilot study to evaluate the impact of dual active ingredient insecticide-treated nets on malaria burden in five regions in sub-Saharan Africa. Malaria Journal 21. 1-20. Doi: 2.10.1185/s12936-021-04026-0

    Montoya LF, et al. 2022. The realized efficacy of indoor residual spraying campaigns falls quickly below the recommended WHO threshold when coverage, pace of spraying and residual efficacy on different wall types are considered. PLoS One 17. e0272655. Doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.027655

    Montoya LF, et al. 2022. The mosquito vectors that sustained malaria transmission during the Magude project despite the combined deployment of indoor residual spraying, insecticide-treated nets and mass-drug administration. PLoS One 17. e0271427. Doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0271427

    Sherrard-Smith E, et al. 2022. Inferring the epidemiological benefit of indoor vector control interventions against malaria from mosquito data. Nature Communications 13. Doi: 2.10.1038/s41467-022-30700-1

    Opiyo M, et al. 2022. Household modifications after the indoor residual spraying (IRS) campaign in Mozambique reduce the actual spray coverage and efficacy. PLoS Global Public Health 2. Doi: 3.10.1371/journal.pgph.0000227

    Green N, et al. 2022. An evidence synthesis approach for combining different data sources illustrated using entomological efficacy of insecticides for indoor residual spraying. PLoS One. 17. e0263446. Doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0263446

    Martin JL, et al. 2022. Durability of three types of dual active ingredient long-lasting insecticidal net compared to a pyrethroid-only LLIN in Tanzania: methodology for a prospective cohort study nested in a cluster randomized controlled trial. Malaria Journal 21. 96. Doi: 10.1186/s12936-022-04119-4

    Sherrard-Smith E, et al. 2022. Optimising the deployment of vector control tools against malaria: a data-informed modelling study. The Lancet Planetary Health 6: e191. 3.10.1016/s2542-5196(22)00040-7