UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Elizabeth "Beth" McGraw, professor and department head of biology and Huck Scholar in Entomology at Penn State, has been elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology, an honorific leadership group and think tank within the American Society for Microbiology (ASM).

Fellows of the academy are elected annually through a highly selective, peer-review process based on their records of scientific achievement and original contributions that have advanced microbiology. The academy received 148 nominations this year and elected 65 into the 2023 fellowship class. There are more than 2,600 fellows in the academy representing all subspecialties of the microbial sciences and involved in basic and applied research, teaching, public health, industry and government service. Academy fellows are eminent leaders in the field of microbiology and are relied upon for authoritative advice and insight on critical issues in microbiology.

“Beth is a flourishing, senior scholar who colleagues look up to and want to emulate,” said Seth Bordenstein, Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Endowed Chair in Microbiome Sciences, professor of biology and entomology, and director of the Penn State Microbiome Center. “Her election is an enduring recognition of both her scholarship that elegantly adds major rungs to the ladders of vector biology, symbiosis, and evolution and her leadership that is long-lasting, present, and always helpful.”

McGraw’s research examines how genetic diversity in a virus like dengue, and in its mosquito host, affects how the virus is transmitted. She also studies the relationship between mosquitoes and their endosymbiotic bacteria, Wolbachia. Her lab is investigating how the bacteria prevents harmful pathogens from replicating inside the mosquito — a trait that is the cornerstone of an international effort to develop Wolbachia-based biocontrol against mosquito-borne diseases.

“Being elected as a fellow is a real honor,” said McGraw. “The ASM annual meeting was the first scientific conference I attended as a graduate student, but while living overseas in Australia, I lost touch with the society.  Being welcomed into the leadership feels a bit like coming home scientifically. I am looking forward to finding ways to serve the society and further support its strong mission in research and training in the microbial sciences.”

McGraw’s dedication to research and teaching have been recognized with several honors and awards, including the Eureka Prize from the Australian Infectious Diseases Research Centre in 2013 for her work as part of the Eliminate Dengue Team, the Ross Crozier Medal from the Genetics Society of AustralAsia in 2012, the Larkins Fellowship from Monash University in 2011, the Smart Futures Fellowship from the Queensland government in 2010, the Executive Dean’s Medal for Outstanding Performance in Undergraduate Teaching from the University of Queensland in 2007, and commendations for the Enhancement of Student Learning from the University of Queensland in 2005 and 2003. She has authored almost 90 scientific articles in journals including Nature, Cell, Nature Reviews Microbiology, and PLOS Pathogens.

McGraw was named department head of biology in 2021. She served as director of the Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics at Penn State from 2018 to 2021 and is a member of the Penn State Microbiome Center. McGraw also provided considerable guidance to the Penn State community during the COVID-19 pandemic. She led the University’s COVID-19 seed grant initiative, was a member of the University COVID-19 task force on strategic communications to students, and developed the video series “AskCIDD,” in collaboration with colleagues, to respond to questions from the public, producing more than 60 videos in the first year.

Prior to joining Penn State in 2017, she served on the faculty at Monash University in Victoria, Australia, from 2011 to 2017 and as an assistant professor and senior lecturer in genetics at the University of Queensland, Australia, from 2002 to 2001. She completed postdoctoral research at the University of Queensland and at the Yale University School of Medicine. McGraw earned a doctoral degree in biology from Penn State in 1998 and a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Michigan in 1993.

About the American Society for Microbiology

The ASM is one of the largest professional societies dedicated to the life sciences and is composed of 30,000 scientists and health practitioners. ASM's mission is to promote and advance the microbial sciences. ASM advances the microbial sciences through conferences, publications, certifications and educational opportunities. It enhances laboratory capacity around the globe through training and resources. It provides a network for scientists in academia, industry and clinical settings. Additionally, ASM promotes a deeper understanding of the microbial sciences to diverse audiences.