Submitter:
Profs. Lydia Bourouiba and Sanjat Kanjilal
Submitter Lead?
YES
Detailed phenotyping of clinical cohorts in infectious diseases can typically only be done in comparatively small numbers of patients (~hundreds at best), though the clinical phenotyping can be done in detail and very precisely (e.g., including clinical surveillance). A critical challenge is how to map such cohorts of patients, associated with detailed physiological and clinical metrics, to a larger population dynamics and less granular metrics of surveillance. This project will explore such methodological mapping approaches in a rational and rigorous manner leveraging existing databases and surveillance systems for infectious diseases in clinical settings.
Clinical infectious diseases
Surveillance
Mathematical epidemiology
Multiscale modeling
Risk of infectious disease
transmission
Mathematical epidemiology
Submitter
Mete K. Yuksel, Courtney L. Schreiner
Submitter Lead?
YES
Recombination and reassortment, processes that shuffle genetic variation in viruses, have been implicated in the evolution, spillover, and emergence of zoonotic diseases such as influenza and SARS-CoV-2. But there is disagreement about the frequency and importance of these processes. We propose using Lassa virus, a rodent-borne RNA virus that is endemic in West Africa, to develop a better understanding of how often –– and where –– viral genomes may be recombining or reassorting. To do this, we will use publicly-available sequence data to estimate reassortment rates and networks for Lassa in different parts of its range. If Lassa is reassorting, we will apply phylogeographic methods to estimate the speed of Lassa dispersal and pinpoint the locations of genetic ancestors. This knowledge could be used to identify where novel strains of Lassa may arise and, thus, inform surveillance and control efforts.
| Mathematical biology |
| Virology |
| Population genetics |
| Genomics |
| Geography |
| Statistics |
| Public health policy |
Submitter
Alanna Hoyer-Leitzel
Submitter Lead?
YES
Rotavirus is a gastrointestinal infection that presents in children, but rarely in adults. There are multiple theories for this pattern of infection. We would like to propose a theoretical model in which a low-dose, regular exposure to the virus can lead to long-term immunity but with a transient period of reoccurring infections. Previous work (see the linked paper and attached supplemental figure) using a model parameterized for influenza A shows a similar pattern. This model could be re-parameterized for Rotavirus, potentially giving a theoretical explanation for patterns of Rotavirus infection in children and adults.
| Discipline | |
|---|---|
| Rotavirus | |
| Data Processing | |
| Parameter Estimation | |
| Dynamical Systems Modeling | |
| Stochastic Systems Modeling |
