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Mr Ayman Asiri
Teams and roles for Ayman Asiri
Graduate Demonstrator
School of Biosciences
Research student
School of Biosciences
Overview
I have a broad interest in entomology, with a particular focus on how insects respond to and are affected by disease, especially pollinators.
I graduated with a BSc (Hons) in Biological Sciences from the University of Plymouth in 2020. During my degree, I undertook a placement year working as a curatorial assistant in an entomology laboratory, and spent time in the Apennine Mountains of Italy contributing to a bear conservation project. Following my undergraduate studies, I completed an MSc by Research in Entomology at the University of Reading.
My current research focuses on disease in honey bees, but I’m also interested in extending this work to include wild pollinators. During my academic journey, I’ve had the opportunity to work on a diverse range of invertebrate research projects, including studies on isopod immunity, disease and colour polymorphism in ladybirds, and spider biodiversity.
Publication
2025
- Asiri, A., Perkins, S. E. and Muller, C. 2025. The smell of infection: Disease surveillance in insects using volatile organic compounds. Agricultural and Forest Entomology 27(1), pp. 81-89. (10.1111/afe.12651)
Articles
- Asiri, A., Perkins, S. E. and Muller, C. 2025. The smell of infection: Disease surveillance in insects using volatile organic compounds. Agricultural and Forest Entomology 27(1), pp. 81-89. (10.1111/afe.12651)
Research
Research interests
- Insect disease and parasitism
- Arthropod ecology
- Insect behaviour
- Invertebrate immunity
- Insect husbandry
Current research
NERC GW4+: The smell of infection – detecting infectious disease and determining mechanisms underlying the spread of disease in social networks.
Ayman Asiri, Dr S Perkins, Dr C Muller
Social animals have evolved behavioural mechanisms to mitigate the risks of infection. One such mechanism could be based on changes in 'smell' between infected and uninfected individuals. Both non-infectious and infectious diseases are known to change volatile organic compound (VOC) profiles in livestock, wildlife, and humans. In insects, VOCs serve as the chemical language of communication. However, parasites may also have evolved to exploit and/or manipulate host behaviour to improve transmission. As such, smell may be a mechanism underlying the transmission of disease in social insect systems.
Apiculture worldwide is under threat by the emergence and persistence of infectious diseases such as European and American foulbrood, Nosemosis, and Varroa mite, with effects ranging from reduction in honey production to full colony collapse. Honey bees main disease resistance mechanism is social immunity – the collective defence against parasites and pathogens within the hive. Disease avoidance behaviours, such as modulation of social networks and social segregation, alongside their pheromonal communication have been widely researched. This make honey bees an excellent model system to investigate the effects of pathogen load and 'smell' as a mechanism that alters how epidemics progress in social networks.
We are using detailed behavioural observations paired with VOC analysis to determine if odour of infection is a mechanism driving infectious disease dynamics. Furthermore, VOC monitoring is an emerging non-invasive method of managed insect disease surviellance. The findings of this research will elucidate key mechanisms in disease transmission and deliver a novel approach to monitoring infections in apiculture and potentially infections in general.