School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine

Dr Sara Gandy

  • Research Associate (Ecology & Environmental Change)

Biography

I am currently a Research Associate on the FarmAquaNet project, where I lead the discrete choice experiment investigating the willingness of fish farmers in Thailand to reduce antibiotic use and adopt alternative practices that help mitigate antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in aquaculture and the environment.

Career history:

2026 - present:

 

Research Associate - FarmAquaNet project

University of Glasgow

 

2024 - 2026:

Research Associate - MEaSURE project

University of Glasgow

 

 

2020 - 2024: 

Senior Medical Entomologist

UK Health Security Agency

 

2016 - 2020: 

PhD Researcher

University of Glasgow

Research interests

My research focuses on understanding the ecological and social drivers of infectious diseases, with particular expertise in tick-borne diseases. Over the past decade, I have investigated the mechanisms underlying pathogen transmission in complex ecological systems, with a particular emphasis on the interactions between ticks, wildlife hosts, and pathogens. My work has explored how variation in host community composition influences tick abundance, pathogen prevalence, and disease hazard.

A key theme of my research has been assessing how environmental changes affect tick-borne disease hazard. This has included examining the impacts of woodland restoration, habitat management, and rewilding initiatives on tick populations and pathogen transmission in the UK. Through this work, I have sought to improve understanding of how biodiversity, land-use change, and ecosystem management can influence human exposure to vector-borne diseases.

More recently, I have developed an interest in the socio-ecological dimensions of infectious disease risk. My research is exploring how social, economic, and behavioural factors interact with ecological processes to shape disease outcomes and contribute to health inequalities. In particular, I am interested in understanding why certain communities or population groups are disproportionately affected by Lyme disease and other vector-borne diseases, and how these disparities can be addressed through targeted interventions.

My current research increasingly integrates social science approaches into environmental and public health challenges. Through the FarmAquaNet project, I use discrete choice experiments to investigate how stakeholders make decisions about disease prevention and antimicrobial resistance mitigation. This work aims to identify interventions and policy measures that are not only effective from a scientific perspective but are also acceptable, feasible, and likely to be adopted in practice.

 

 

Research groups

Publications

List by: Type | Date

Jump to: 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021
Number of items: 26.

2026

McLellan, William, Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Ghazoul, Jaboury, Olsthoorn, Fanny, May, Livia, Eze, Jude, Rocchi, Mara, Sprong, Hein and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2026) The roles of contrasting host types on the environmental abundance of Anaplasma phagocytophilum, an emerging zoonotic pathogen. Ecology and Evolution, 16(9), e74308. (doi: 10.1002/ece3.74308)

Windram, F. et al. (2026) Come together: Data sharing to support one health responses to vector‐borne disease threats. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, (doi: 10.1111/mve.70096) (PMID:42517546) (Early Online Publication)

Gandy, Sara L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hall, Jessica, Plahe, Grace, Johnson, David ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5378-0982, Birtles, Richard and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2026) Temporal and spatial drivers of Lyme disease hazard differ between urban and rural environments. Landscape and Urban Planning, 269, 105597. (doi: 10.1016/j.landurbplan.2026.105597)

Gandy, S. L. et al. (2026) Disentangling complex disease ecology networks: using Structural Equation Modelling to quantify the direct and indirect effects of deer on Lyme borreliosis hazard. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 17(1), 102595. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2025.102595) (PMID:41496249)

2025

Gandy, Sara L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hall, Jessica L., Plahe, Grace, Watkinson, Kirsty, Johnson, David, Birtles, Richard J. and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2025) The dependence of urban tick and Lyme disease hazards on the hinterlands. Nature Cities, (doi: 10.1038/s44284-025-00320-z) (Early Online Publication)

Gandy, S. L. et al. (2025) An update on Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. prevalence and hazard in ticks at recreational areas in England and Wales between 2021 and 2023. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 16(5), 102523. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2025.102523) (PMID:40729866)

Gandy, S. L. et al. (2025) The role of large ungulate grazers on Ixodes ricinus and tick-borne pathogens in the New Forest - a case study for future rewilded landscapes. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 16(5), 102541. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2025.102541) (PMID:40885150)

White, M. L. et al. (2025) A full-length 16S survey using Nanopore sequencing to uncover the bacterial microbiome in Ixodes ricinus ticks from a single UK woodland, collected across three springs (2019-2021). Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 16(4), 102506. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2025.102506) (PMID:40577939)

Gould, E. et al. (2025) Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology. BMC Biology, 23(1), 35. (doi: 10.1186/s12915-024-02101-x) (PMID:39915771) (PMCID:PMC11804095)

Olsthoorn, F. et al. (2025) Woodland expansion and deer management shape tick abundance and Lyme disease hazard. Ecological Solutions and Evidence, 6(1), e12403. (doi: 10.1002/2688-8319.12403)

2024

Medlock, J.M., Gandy, S.L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, White, M.L., Kohl, R., Sprong, H. and Hansford, K.M. (2024) Ixodes ricinus (Acari, Ixodidae) ticks and tick-borne pathogen prevalence on the Isle of Wight – an island perspective in southern England. Journal of the European Mosquito Control Association, (doi: 10.52004/2054930x-20241011) (Early Online Publication)

Medlock, J. M., Hawkes, F. M., Cheke, R. A., Gibson, G., Abbott, A. J., Cull, B., Gandy, S. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hardy, H., Acott, T. and Vaux, A. G. C. (2024) Mosquito diversity and abundance in English wetlands – empirical evidence to guide predictions for wetland suitability for mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae). Journal of the European Mosquito Control Association, 42(1), pp. 3-29. (doi: 10.52004/2054930X-20231002)

Schilling, Mirjam, Golding, Megan, Jones, Ben P., Mansfield, Karen L., Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Medlock, Jolyon and Johnson, Nicholas (2024) Sequences related to Chimay rhabdovirus are widely distributed in Ixodes ricinus ticks across England and Wales. Viruses, 16(4), 504. (doi: 10.3390/v16040504)

Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Medlock, Jolyon, Cull, Benjamin, Smith, Rob, Gibney, Zoë, Sewgobind, Sanam, Parekh, Insiyah, Harding, Sophie, Johnson, Nicholas and Hansford, Kayleigh (2024) Detection of Babesia species in questing Ixodes ricinus ticks in England and Wales. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 15(1), 102291. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2023.102291) (PMID:38061320)

2023

Gould, E. et al. (2023) Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology. EcoEvoRxiv, (doi: 10.32942/X2GG62)

Apaa, Ternenge Thaddaeus, McFadzean, Harriet, Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hansford, Kayleigh, Medlock, Jolyon and Johnson, Nicholas (2023) Anaplasma phagocytophilum ecotype analysis in cattle from Great Britain. Pathogens, 12, 1029. (doi: 10.3390/pathogens12081029) (PMID:37623989) (PMCID:PMC10459425)

Medlock, J.M., Gandy, S. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Johnston, C., Handfield, Z., Neely, K. and Vaux, A.G.C. (2023) Snap-shot assessment of adult mosquito (Diptera: Culicidae) densities on the Turks and Caicos Islands, February 2022. Journal of the European Mosquito Control Association, 41(1), pp. 17-24. (doi: 10.52004/jemca2022.0004)

Gandy, Sara L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hansford, Kayleigh M. and Medlock, Jolyon M. (2023) Possible expansion of Ixodes ricinus in the United Kingdom identified through the Tick Surveillance Scheme between 2013 and 2020. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 37(1), pp. 96-104. (doi: 10.1111/mve.12612) (PMID:36239468) (PMCID:PMC10092138)

Hansford, Kayleigh M., Gandy, Sara L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Gillingham, Emma L., McGinley, Liz, Cull, Benjamin, Johnston, Colin, Catton, Matthew and Medlock, Jolyon M. (2023) Mapping and monitoring tick (Acari, Ixodida) distribution, seasonality, and host associations in the United Kingdom between 2017 and 2020. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 37(1), pp. 152-163. (doi: 10.1111/mve.12621) (PMID:36309852) (PMCID:PMC10092223)

2022

Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Kilbride, Elizabeth, Biek, Roman ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3471-5357, Millins, Caroline ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2006-092X and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2022) No net effect of host density on tick-borne disease hazard due to opposing roles of vector amplification and pathogen dilution. Ecology and Evolution, 12(9), e9253. (doi: 10.1002/ece3.9253) (PMID:36091342) (PMCID:PMC9448966)

Medlock, Jolyon M., Vaux, Alexander G.C., Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Cull, Benjamin, McGinley, Liz, Gillingham, Emma, Catton, Matthew and Pullan, Steven T. (2022) Spatial and temporal heterogeneity of the density of Borrelia burgdorferi-infected Ixodes ricinus ticks across a landscape: A 5-year study in southern England. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 36(3), pp. 356-370. (doi: 10.1111/mve.12574) (PMID:35521893) (PMCID:PMC9545817)

Gandy, S. et al. (2022) Prevalence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum in questing Ixodes ricinus nymphs across twenty recreational areas in England and Wales. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 13(4), 101965. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2022.101965) (PMID:35597188)

Medlock, Jolyon M., Hansford, Kayleigh M., Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Vaux, Alexander G.C., Keane, Emma, Phipps, Paul and Johnson, Nick (2022) Managing red sheep ticks in Sussex. Vet Record, 190(5), pp. 202-203. (doi: 10.1002/vetr.1555)

Medlock, J.M., Guillem, R., Johnston, C., Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Findlay-Wilson, S., Desoisa, K., Schaffner, F. and Vaux, A.G.C. (2022) The first 6 years of surveillance of Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) in Gibraltar. Journal of the European Mosquito Control Association, 40(1), pp. 23-35. (doi: 10.52004/jemca2022.0001)

2021

Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Kilbride, Elizabeth, Biek, Roman ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3471-5357, Millins, Caroline ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2006-092X and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2021) Experimental evidence for opposing effects of high deer density on tick-borne disease pathogen prevalence and hazard. Parasites and Vectors, 14(1), 509. (doi: 10.1186/s13071-021-05000-0) (PMID:34593023) (PMCID:PMC8485466)

Hansford, K. M. et al. (2021) Ixodes ricinus and Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in the Royal Parks of London, UK. Experimental and Applied Acarology, 84(3), pp. 593-606. (doi: 10.1007/s10493-021-00633-3) (PMID:34125334)

This list was generated on Thu Sep 24 09:59:05 2026 BST.
Jump to: Articles
Number of items: 26.

Articles

McLellan, William, Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Ghazoul, Jaboury, Olsthoorn, Fanny, May, Livia, Eze, Jude, Rocchi, Mara, Sprong, Hein and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2026) The roles of contrasting host types on the environmental abundance of Anaplasma phagocytophilum, an emerging zoonotic pathogen. Ecology and Evolution, 16(9), e74308. (doi: 10.1002/ece3.74308)

Windram, F. et al. (2026) Come together: Data sharing to support one health responses to vector‐borne disease threats. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, (doi: 10.1111/mve.70096) (PMID:42517546) (Early Online Publication)

Gandy, Sara L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hall, Jessica, Plahe, Grace, Johnson, David ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5378-0982, Birtles, Richard and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2026) Temporal and spatial drivers of Lyme disease hazard differ between urban and rural environments. Landscape and Urban Planning, 269, 105597. (doi: 10.1016/j.landurbplan.2026.105597)

Gandy, S. L. et al. (2026) Disentangling complex disease ecology networks: using Structural Equation Modelling to quantify the direct and indirect effects of deer on Lyme borreliosis hazard. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 17(1), 102595. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2025.102595) (PMID:41496249)

Gandy, Sara L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hall, Jessica L., Plahe, Grace, Watkinson, Kirsty, Johnson, David, Birtles, Richard J. and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2025) The dependence of urban tick and Lyme disease hazards on the hinterlands. Nature Cities, (doi: 10.1038/s44284-025-00320-z) (Early Online Publication)

Gandy, S. L. et al. (2025) An update on Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. prevalence and hazard in ticks at recreational areas in England and Wales between 2021 and 2023. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 16(5), 102523. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2025.102523) (PMID:40729866)

Gandy, S. L. et al. (2025) The role of large ungulate grazers on Ixodes ricinus and tick-borne pathogens in the New Forest - a case study for future rewilded landscapes. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 16(5), 102541. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2025.102541) (PMID:40885150)

White, M. L. et al. (2025) A full-length 16S survey using Nanopore sequencing to uncover the bacterial microbiome in Ixodes ricinus ticks from a single UK woodland, collected across three springs (2019-2021). Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 16(4), 102506. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2025.102506) (PMID:40577939)

Gould, E. et al. (2025) Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology. BMC Biology, 23(1), 35. (doi: 10.1186/s12915-024-02101-x) (PMID:39915771) (PMCID:PMC11804095)

Olsthoorn, F. et al. (2025) Woodland expansion and deer management shape tick abundance and Lyme disease hazard. Ecological Solutions and Evidence, 6(1), e12403. (doi: 10.1002/2688-8319.12403)

Medlock, J.M., Gandy, S.L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, White, M.L., Kohl, R., Sprong, H. and Hansford, K.M. (2024) Ixodes ricinus (Acari, Ixodidae) ticks and tick-borne pathogen prevalence on the Isle of Wight – an island perspective in southern England. Journal of the European Mosquito Control Association, (doi: 10.52004/2054930x-20241011) (Early Online Publication)

Medlock, J. M., Hawkes, F. M., Cheke, R. A., Gibson, G., Abbott, A. J., Cull, B., Gandy, S. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hardy, H., Acott, T. and Vaux, A. G. C. (2024) Mosquito diversity and abundance in English wetlands – empirical evidence to guide predictions for wetland suitability for mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae). Journal of the European Mosquito Control Association, 42(1), pp. 3-29. (doi: 10.52004/2054930X-20231002)

Schilling, Mirjam, Golding, Megan, Jones, Ben P., Mansfield, Karen L., Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Medlock, Jolyon and Johnson, Nicholas (2024) Sequences related to Chimay rhabdovirus are widely distributed in Ixodes ricinus ticks across England and Wales. Viruses, 16(4), 504. (doi: 10.3390/v16040504)

Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Medlock, Jolyon, Cull, Benjamin, Smith, Rob, Gibney, Zoë, Sewgobind, Sanam, Parekh, Insiyah, Harding, Sophie, Johnson, Nicholas and Hansford, Kayleigh (2024) Detection of Babesia species in questing Ixodes ricinus ticks in England and Wales. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 15(1), 102291. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2023.102291) (PMID:38061320)

Gould, E. et al. (2023) Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology. EcoEvoRxiv, (doi: 10.32942/X2GG62)

Apaa, Ternenge Thaddaeus, McFadzean, Harriet, Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hansford, Kayleigh, Medlock, Jolyon and Johnson, Nicholas (2023) Anaplasma phagocytophilum ecotype analysis in cattle from Great Britain. Pathogens, 12, 1029. (doi: 10.3390/pathogens12081029) (PMID:37623989) (PMCID:PMC10459425)

Medlock, J.M., Gandy, S. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Johnston, C., Handfield, Z., Neely, K. and Vaux, A.G.C. (2023) Snap-shot assessment of adult mosquito (Diptera: Culicidae) densities on the Turks and Caicos Islands, February 2022. Journal of the European Mosquito Control Association, 41(1), pp. 17-24. (doi: 10.52004/jemca2022.0004)

Gandy, Sara L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Hansford, Kayleigh M. and Medlock, Jolyon M. (2023) Possible expansion of Ixodes ricinus in the United Kingdom identified through the Tick Surveillance Scheme between 2013 and 2020. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 37(1), pp. 96-104. (doi: 10.1111/mve.12612) (PMID:36239468) (PMCID:PMC10092138)

Hansford, Kayleigh M., Gandy, Sara L. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Gillingham, Emma L., McGinley, Liz, Cull, Benjamin, Johnston, Colin, Catton, Matthew and Medlock, Jolyon M. (2023) Mapping and monitoring tick (Acari, Ixodida) distribution, seasonality, and host associations in the United Kingdom between 2017 and 2020. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 37(1), pp. 152-163. (doi: 10.1111/mve.12621) (PMID:36309852) (PMCID:PMC10092223)

Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Kilbride, Elizabeth, Biek, Roman ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3471-5357, Millins, Caroline ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2006-092X and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2022) No net effect of host density on tick-borne disease hazard due to opposing roles of vector amplification and pathogen dilution. Ecology and Evolution, 12(9), e9253. (doi: 10.1002/ece3.9253) (PMID:36091342) (PMCID:PMC9448966)

Medlock, Jolyon M., Vaux, Alexander G.C., Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Cull, Benjamin, McGinley, Liz, Gillingham, Emma, Catton, Matthew and Pullan, Steven T. (2022) Spatial and temporal heterogeneity of the density of Borrelia burgdorferi-infected Ixodes ricinus ticks across a landscape: A 5-year study in southern England. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 36(3), pp. 356-370. (doi: 10.1111/mve.12574) (PMID:35521893) (PMCID:PMC9545817)

Gandy, S. et al. (2022) Prevalence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum in questing Ixodes ricinus nymphs across twenty recreational areas in England and Wales. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 13(4), 101965. (doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2022.101965) (PMID:35597188)

Medlock, Jolyon M., Hansford, Kayleigh M., Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Vaux, Alexander G.C., Keane, Emma, Phipps, Paul and Johnson, Nick (2022) Managing red sheep ticks in Sussex. Vet Record, 190(5), pp. 202-203. (doi: 10.1002/vetr.1555)

Medlock, J.M., Guillem, R., Johnston, C., Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Findlay-Wilson, S., Desoisa, K., Schaffner, F. and Vaux, A.G.C. (2022) The first 6 years of surveillance of Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) in Gibraltar. Journal of the European Mosquito Control Association, 40(1), pp. 23-35. (doi: 10.52004/jemca2022.0001)

Gandy, Sara ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2579-4479, Kilbride, Elizabeth, Biek, Roman ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3471-5357, Millins, Caroline ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2006-092X and Gilbert, Lucy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9139-8450 (2021) Experimental evidence for opposing effects of high deer density on tick-borne disease pathogen prevalence and hazard. Parasites and Vectors, 14(1), 509. (doi: 10.1186/s13071-021-05000-0) (PMID:34593023) (PMCID:PMC8485466)

Hansford, K. M. et al. (2021) Ixodes ricinus and Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in the Royal Parks of London, UK. Experimental and Applied Acarology, 84(3), pp. 593-606. (doi: 10.1007/s10493-021-00633-3) (PMID:34125334)

This list was generated on Thu Sep 24 09:59:05 2026 BST.

picture sara

Dr Sara Gandy on Bluesky