Cara Brook, Ph.D.
University of Chicago
Cara Brook, Ph.D.
Cara is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Chicago. She received her B.S. in Earth Systems from Stanford University in 2010 and her M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Princeton University in 2014 and 2017, respectively. While at Princeton, Cara pioneered a long-term field study in Madagascar, which she still maintains, studying the viral transmission and population viability for three species of threatened endemic Old World Fruit Bats. From 2017-2020, Cara was a Miller Postdoctoral Fellow at UC Berkeley. In 2020, she was awarded a Loréal USA For Women in Science fellowship and a Branco Weiss Society in Science fellowship.
Project Summary
Harnessing Fruit Bat Conservation to Combat Zoonotic Risk in Madagascar
The Brook lab at the University of Chicago has been studying the dynamics of zoonotic viruses, including SARS-CoV-2-related coronaviruses, circulating in three threatened Madagascar fruit bats since 2013. Cara will conduct a conservation status re-assessment of these species’ population viability in light of accelerated human hunting and investigate the feasibility of habitat restoration to improve fruit bat health and mitigate risks for zoonotic transmission. This work is a collaboration between UChicago, the Field Museum, Madagasikara Voakajy, and the University of Antananarivo. The project expands molecular and quantitative educational programs for Malagasy scientists and trains Chicago-based students in Madagascar fieldwork.
