biology

Maria Cristina Ferro

Maria Cristina Ferro is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Maria Cristina Ferro rather than just read about it. In short: Maria Cristina Ferro de Carrasquilla (1947–2015) was a Colombian microbiologist and Leishmaniasis researcher who worked for more than forty years at the National Health Institute of Colombia. Most of her research was focused on sandflies (Phlebotominae subfamily), which are Leishmaniasis vectors, contributing with the description of three new species: Lutzomyia torvida, Lutzomyia falcata, and Lutzomyia tolimensis.

Key takeaways

Maria Cristina Ferro belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Maria Cristina Ferro to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Maria Cristina Ferro from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Maria Cristina Ferro de Carrasquilla (1947–2015) was a Colombian microbiologist and Leishmaniasis researcher who worked for more than forty years at the National Health Institute of Colombia. Most of her research was focused on sandflies (Phlebotominae subfamily), which are Leishmaniasis vectors, contributing with the description of three new species: Lutzomyia torvida, Lutzomyia falcata, and Lutzomyia tolimensis. Given her research contributions, a sandfly species was named after her: Lutzomyia ferroae (Young & Morales 1987). Ferro also worked with Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus and received the Emeritus Researcher award from the National Health Institute of Colombia in 2007.

Biography Ferro obtained a bachelor's degree in Microbiology at University of Los Andes in Bogota in 1969 and started working in the Entomology laboratory at the National Health Institute of Colombia, focusing on Leishmaniasis vectors with the entomologists Ernesto Osorno Mesa, Fenita Muñoz de Osorno, and Alberto Morales Alarcon. Phlebotominae taxonomy, biology and ecology was the core of her research studies. During 1975–1976, she did a Master of Science in Parasitology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine with British Council fellowship. Afterwards, she returned to the Entomology laboratory at the National Health Institute of Colombia and from 1994 to 2005, she was the coordinator. In 2006, she became principal researcher of several projects and editor of the National Health Institute journal: Biomedica. In 2007, Ferro was recognized as Emeritus Researcher for her research contributions in Leishmaniasis and Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus in the medical entomology field.

Research field Ferro's research was focused on the study of Leishmaniasis and Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus vectors. She described three new species of phlebotomines: Lutzomyia torvida., Lutzomyia falcata, and Lutzomyia tolimensis. Ferro contributed with new sandfly species records in Colombia, increasing the knowledge on Phlebotominae geographical distribution, biology and genetics. Additionally, Ferro isolated Leishmania species and new phlebotomines viruses, and investigated the incrimination, vectorial capacity, environmental anad ecological factors associated with Leishmaniasis transmission. A new phlebotomine species was named after her, Lutzomyia ferroae, due to her research contributions.

Awards Colciencias 1995 Research Award - The Entolomology laboratory was recognized as an excellence A group category Ernesto Osorno Mesa Award - Entomological Colombian Society Conference Senior Researcher - Colciencias Honorable Mention in the Health and Medical Sciences category Colombian Emeritus Researcher in 2014 - Colciencias

Selected publications During her scientific career, Ferro published more than one hundred scientific papers and four book chapters, and advised several undergraduate and graduate research projects. To date, her most cited publications are:

Weaver, S. C., Ferro, C., Barrera, R., Boshell, J., & Navarro, J. C. (2004). Venezuelan equine encephalitis. Annual Reviews in Entomology, 49(1), 141–174. Travi, B. L., Tabares, C. J., Cadena, H., Ferro, C., & Osorio, Y. (2001). Canine visceral leishmaniasis in Colombia: relationship between clinical and parasitologic status and infectivity for sand flies. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene, 64(3), 119–124. Morrison, A. C., Ferro, C., Morales, A., Tesh, R. B., & Wilson, M. L. (1993). Dispersal of the sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis (Diptera: Psychodidae) at an endemic focus of visceral leishmaniasis in Colombia. Journal of medical entomology, 30(2), 427–435. Corredor, A., Gallego, J. F., Tesh, R. B., Morales, A., de Carrasquilla, C. F., Young, D. G., ... & Pelaez, D. (1989). Epidemiology of visceral leishmaniasis in Colombia. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene, 40(5), 480–486. Morrison, A. C., Ferro, C., & Tesh, R. B. (1993). Host preferences of the sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis at an endemic focus of American visceral leishmaniasis in Colombia. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene, 49(1), 68–75. Corredor, A., Kreutzer, R. D., Tesh, R. B., Boshell, J., Palau, M. T., Caceres, E., ... & Hernandez, C. A. (1990). Distribution and etiology of leishmaniasis in Colombia. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene, 42(3), 206–214. Aguilar, P. V., Estrada-Franco, J. G., Navarro-Lopez, R., Ferro, C., Haddow, A. D., & Weaver, S. C. (2011). Endemic Venezuelan equine encephalitis in the Americas: hidden under the dengue umbrella. Future virology, 6(6), 721–740.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Maria Cristina Ferro

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Maria Cristina Ferro claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Maria Cristina Ferro before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Maria Cristina Ferro ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Maria Cristina Ferro

In research: Maria Cristina Ferro appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Maria Cristina Ferro in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Maria Cristina Ferro is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1947 births, 2015 deaths, 20th-century Colombian biologists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Maria Cristina Ferro outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Maria Cristina Ferro in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Maria Cristina Ferro means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Maria Cristina Ferro out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Maria Cristina Ferro in simple terms?

Why does Maria Cristina Ferro matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Maria Cristina Ferro?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Maria Cristina Ferro.