Ana I. Bento is a disease ecologist and epidemiologist whose research focuses on the probability that a pathogen introduction into a population will lead to an outbreak. She investigates the conditions under which transmission dies out or becomes established and spreads, asking why the same pathogen can produce markedly different outbreak trajectories depending on the contact networks, immunity, and ecological context it encounters.

Using a complex systems approach, she examines how the distribution of immunity, connectivity among populations, vector habitats, land use, climate, and human behavior shape this risk. She combines mathematical and computational modeling, network analysis, phylodynamics, and statistical inference with epidemiological, genomic, and environmental data to connect processes at the individual level with epidemic dynamics in populations.

Her research spans four areas: emerging arboviruses; population immunity and epidemic forecasting; the resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases, including measles and pertussis; and pathogen transmission between humans and other animals. Her goal is to anticipate where and when an introduction could trigger an outbreak and inform surveillance, vaccination, and other prevention measures.

She holds a PhD in Ecology and Evolution from Imperial College London and is an Assistant Professor at Cornell University and a Group Leader at the Católica Biomedical Research Centre (CBR), Universidade Católica Portuguesa. She is a researcher in the CBeRa project, which applies network science and complex systems approaches to biomedical research. Previously, she served as Director of Science for the Pandemic Prevention Initiative at The Rockefeller Foundation.

Field of Work

Outbreak risk following pathogen introduction | Infectious disease epidemiology and ecology | Epidemic modeling and forecasting | Pathogen evolution and genomic surveillance | Climate and health | Pandemic prevention

Education 

2007: BSc (Honors) in Biology and ARCS, Imperial College London, United Kingdom

Postgraduate Qualifications

2012: PhD in Ecology and Evolution, Imperial College London, United Kingdom

Roles at FM-UCP

• Research Group Leader at the Católica Biomedical Research Centre (CBR).
• Researcher in the CBeRa project

Professional Activity

• Católica Medical School, Universidade Católica Portuguesa (FM-UCP)
• Católica Biomedical Research Centre (CBR)

Summary of Professional Career

• 2012–2015: MRC Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Imperial College London, United Kingdom.
• 2015–2019: Postdoctoral Research Associate in mathematical modeling and inference for infectious diseases, Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia, United States.
• 2019–2023: Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Indiana University, United States.
• 2019–2024: Affiliated Faculty, Center for the Ecology of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia, United States.
• 2020–present: Infectious Disease Epidemiologist, WHO Technical Advisory Group on COVID-19, focusing on scenario modeling and interventions.
• 2022–2023: Director of Science, Pandemic Prevention Initiative, The Rockefeller Foundation.
• 2023–present: Assistant Professor of Infectious Disease Eco-Epidemiology, Department of Public and Ecosystem Health, Cornell University, United States.
• 2025–present: Research activities at the Católica Biomedical Research Centre (CBR), Universidade Católica Portuguesa

Languages

Portuguese | English | Spanish | French | Italian

Other Interests

• Walking my Great Danes, Margot and Frankie
• Fencing
• Traveling