Makella Coudray
University of Central Florida, FL·Public Health & Epidemiology·Early-career
Trans women face one of the largest sexual health gaps of any group. Global HIV prevalence among trans women is estimated at about 19%, roughly 50 times that of adults of reproductive age.
- Fields
Public Health & Epidemiology
Medicine & Clinical Research
Social Science
- Topics
trans women
transgender health
sexually transmitted infections
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through Jun 2028
What they work on
- Assess the acceptability, feasibility and accuracy of self-collected versus clinician-collected genital and non-genital specimens for STI detection among trans women, using mixed methods.
- Estimate the prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae and syphilis at genital, rectal and pharyngeal (throat) sites among trans women, using laboratory-confirmed testing.
- Characterize how social and spatial network factors, such as network structure, social support and neighborhood context, shape STI risk among trans women, including differences by genital surgery status.
More about the research
Rates of other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are also high, including chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis. Yet non-HIV STIs in this population are poorly studied. Lab-confirmed data are limited, little is known about STI risk in tissue after genital surgery, and there are no standard guidelines for testing multiple body sites. Barriers to health care and uneven patient–provider interactions keep testing low and inconsistent.
Why it matters
Evidence that self-collected, multisite STI testing works for trans women could support scalable screening guidelines, make testing easier to access and catch infections earlier. Clearer data on prevalence and social and neighborhood risk factors, including after genital surgery, could guide prevention programs and help reduce STI disparities.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Jeffrey Klausner
University of Southern California, CA·Medicine & Clinical Research
Test whether chlamydia, gonorrhea or trichomoniasis detected in stored third-trimester vaginal specimens is linked to higher preterm birth risk, and whether risk differs by type of infection.
Marcy Ekanayake-Weber
University at Albany, NY·Public Health & Epidemiology·Early-career
Characterize how sexual behavior and partner networks vary across people in the New York Capital Region, using survey data and community-based group model building workshops.
William Geisler
University of Alabama at Birmingham, AL·Medicine & Clinical Research·Early-career
Determine whether the HLA-DQB1*06 gene variant and chlamydia-specific CD4+ IFN-gamma responses from helper T cells can predict new Chlamydia trachomatis infections in women, to guide testing frequency.
The school
University of Central Florida: 15 labs on PI Pages, $285M a year on research, 290 research doctorates a year.
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