Dr Adriana Adolfi

Biography

Adriana Adolfi joined the LSTM’s Research and Education Facilities Management team in 2026 as Insectary Manager. In this role, she oversees the operation of specialised insect-rearing facilities, ensuring high standards of safety, compliance, and best practice, and supporting researchers in delivering high-quality experimental work.

Prior to this, Adriana was a Technical Manager at the insect branch of LSTM’s spin-out company iiDiagnostics, the Liverpool Insect Testing Establishment (LITE). There, she supported partnerships with commercial and academic clients, contributing to the development and validation of novel vector control products.

Adriana has over a decade of experience in academic research on vector-borne diseases, with a particular focus on malaria. Her work has explored multiple aspects of the biology of the malaria parasite and its mosquito vector, including transgenic technologies to modify the mosquito genome and conducting experimental mosquito infections.

She holds a BSc in Biological Sciences and an MSc in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Catania (Italy), as well as an MSc in Molecular Parasitology and Vector Biology from a joint programme between the Universities of Salford, Manchester, and Keele. She obtained a PhD in Tropical Medicine from LSTM before moving to the University of California Irvine for a two-year Postdoctoral Scholar position. Adriana returned to LSTM as a Postdoctoral Research Associate for two years before joining LITE and later the Facilities Management team.

Selected research publications

An accessible 3D HepG2/C3A liver spheroid model supporting the complete intrahepatocytic lifecycle of Plasmodium falciparum. – Journal: Parasitology – Published: 20th June 2025

Hidden genomic features of an invasive malaria vector, Anopheles stephensi, revealed by a chromosome-level genome assembly – Journal: BMC Biology – Published: 1st December 2021

Small-Cage Laboratory Trials of Genetically-Engineered Anopheline Mosquitoes – Journal: Journal of Visualized Experiments – Published: 1st May 2021

Using the GAL4-UAS System for Functional Genetics in Anopheles gambiae – Journal: Journal of Visualized Experiments – Published: 15th April 2021

Site-Directed φC31-Mediated Integration and Cassette Exchange in Anopheles Vectors of Malaria – Journal: Journal of Visualized Experiments – Published: 2nd February 2021

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