Eisenberg Group - Environmental Determinants of Infectious Diseases

Our broad research interests integrates theoretical work in developing disease transmission models and empirical work in designing and conducting epidemiology studies. Specifically we are interested in the environmental determinants of infectious diseases, and currently have a project in Ecuador studying how changes in the social and natural environment, mediated by road construction, affect the epidemiology of pathogens causing diarrheal diseases.

Research Areas

Microbial Risk Assessment

>> A Dynamic Exposure Assessment for Norovirus in Drinking Water In this study we developed a methodology to characterize the fluctuations in source water quality due to rainfall driven norovirus loadings, applied to a river case study modeled on the Ohio River.
>> Informing Optimal Environmental Interventions for Influenza We explore the contributions of different influenza transmission modes and how these might vary due to heterogeneity in strain, host, and environment.
>> Microbial Risk Assessment of Treatment Reduction Guidelines This study involves modifying a previously published household-level disease transmission model that examines the public health benefits of water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions.
>> Re-Analysis of a Water Filtration Randomized Control Trial This is a re-analysis of a randomized control trial (RCT) conducted in the Democratic Republic of Congo of a household based water filtration device.

Vectorborne Diseases

>> A Regional Study of Seroprevalence and Seroincidence of Dengue in Ecuador Annual serosurveys were conducted over three years in 8 villages of rural northern coastal Ecuador.
>> Mosquito Larval Survey Characterizing Spatial Heterogeneity within Ecuador Household surveys of Aedes aegypti larvae were conducted in the town of Borbon, Ecuador, twice within a one-month period. These data will be analyzed to assess the degree of heterogeneity in the spatial distribution of larvae.
>> Surveillance of Dengue in a Borbon Hospital in Northern Coastal Ecuador An active surveillance of dengue is being conducted through the identification of potential dengue cases.
>> The Relationship between Climate Variability and Malaria Incidence Our research is aimed at determining whether peoples' socio-economic status (SES) modifies the association between climate variability and incidence of malaria in India.

Diarrheal Diseases

>> A Dynamic Exposure Assessment for Norovirus in Drinking Water In this study we developed a methodology to characterize the fluctuations in source water quality due to rainfall driven norovirus loadings, applied to a river case study modeled on the Ohio River.
>> Active Surveillance of Diarrheal Pathogens: A 4-Year Longitudinal Study These data are being used in two distinct analyses: First, to examine the difference between a cohort and cross-sectional design in assessing risks for diarrheal disease. Second, to conduct a detailed longitudinal analysis of diarrheal disease within the region over a four-year period.
>> Diarrheal Disease Transmission Modeling Simulation modeling was used to evaluate the effectiveness of water quality interventions under varying community sanitation and hygiene conditions.
>> Drinking Water Quality in Northern Coastal Ecuador This project examines issues in drinking water quality in northern coastal Ecuador using an observational study design.
>> Escherichia coli Pathotype Genotyping Enteroinvasive Escherichia coli (EIEC) infection rates were examined in Ecuador using a community-based case-control study.
>> Etiology of Diarrheal Disease in an Outpatient Health Clinic in Quito Data from this case-control study on diarrheal disease will be used to both look at which pathogens are causing diarrhea and what proportion of the diarrhea is being caused by the set of pathogens under study.
>> Food Sharing Networks in Rural Coastal Ecuador: A Sociometric Study This study examines the relationship between remoteness of villages from a population center and the extent of clustering in food-sharing social networks, and the effects that these different network structures might have on transmissibility of food-borne pathogens.
>> Giardia Genotyping The main goal of this study was to determine the genotypes of Giardia lamblia isolated from humans living in close proximity to animals in rural Ecuador and also to examine whether a higher percentage of asymptomatic and zoonotic genotypes were present in this area.
>> Indirect Effects of Risk Due to Norovirus: A Transmission System Analysis We describe a model used to understand the determinants of persistence and the conditions under which we would expect to see resurgent within-community outbreaks of gastrointestinal pathogens such as norovirus.
>> Regional Surveillance of Diarrheal Pathogens: A Serial Case-Control Study The construction of a new road in a previously roadless area of northern coastal Ecuador provides a valuable natural experiment to examine how changes in the social and natural environment, mediated by road construction, affect the epidemiology of diarrheal diseases.
>> Rotavirus Genotyping In this community-based case-control study, we examined the epidemiology of rotavirus in 22 rural communities in northern coastal Ecuador over a five-year period.
>> Systematic Review of Heterogeneity in Duration of Norovirus Infectiousness This is a systematic review of the literature for human norovirus shedding duration.
>> Taxonomy of Disease Causation This is an ethnoepidemiologic study of the variability in the taxonomy of diarrheal disease in northern coastal Ecuador.

Antibiotic Resistance

>> Antibiotic Resistance in Broiler Chickens in Northern Coastal Ecuador This study aims to characterize the dynamics of the emergence of antibiotic resistance in chickens.
>> Descriptive Study of the Presence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment This study aims to characterize the profile of antibiotic resistant E. coli bacteria in different environmental media.
>> Ecology of Antibiotic Use in Northern Coastal Ecuador We describe how the flow of antibiotics and their use varies by remoteness of community.
>> Establishing a Causal Connection in the Transfer of Antibiotic Resistance Using stool samples collected in a previous study, we will extract E. coli DNA from each sample and create microarray chips.
>> Regional Surveillance of Antibiotic Resistance: A Serial Case-Control Study This study examines the regional scale surveillance of antibiotic resistance within humans and chickens in northern coastal Ecuador.

Drinking Water Quality

>> A Dynamic Exposure Assessment for Norovirus in Drinking Water In this study we developed a methodology to characterize the fluctuations in source water quality due to rainfall driven norovirus loadings, applied to a river case study modeled on the Ohio River.
>> Drinking Water Quality in Northern Coastal Ecuador This project examines issues in drinking water quality in northern coastal Ecuador using an observational study design.
>> Microbial Risk Assessment of Treatment Reduction Guidelines This study involves modifying a previously published household-level disease transmission model that examines the public health benefits of water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions.
>> Re-Analysis of a Water Filtration Randomized Control Trial This is a re-analysis of a randomized control trial (RCT) conducted in the Democratic Republic of Congo of a household based water filtration device.

Infection Transmission Modeling

>> Analysis of MRSA Transmission in Hospital Settings An individual-based environmental-mediated transmission model was developed for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) within an intensive care unit.
>> Development of a Dynamic Cumulative Dose-Response Model Real world exposure to pathogens is a sequence of discrete events where concurrent or prior pathogen arrival affects the capacity of immune effectors to engage and kill newly arriving pathogens. Here, we model immune effector and pathogen interactions during the period before infection becomes established in order to capture the dynamics generating dose timing effects.
>> Development of an Environmental Infection Transmission System Framework We developed an environmental infection transmission system model that describes the dynamics of human interaction with pathogens in the environment.
>> Diarrheal Disease Transmission Modeling Simulation modeling was used to evaluate the effectiveness of water quality interventions under varying community sanitation and hygiene conditions.
>> Dynamic Processes Underlying Persistent Polio Transmission in India Polio transmission in northern India has been persistent despite high levels of vaccination of children. To explore the dynamics behind this, we analyzed a polio transmission model.
>> Indirect Effects of Risk Due to Norovirus: A Transmission System Analysis We describe a model used to understand the determinants of persistence and the conditions under which we would expect to see resurgent within-community outbreaks of gastrointestinal pathogens such as norovirus.
>> Informing Optimal Environmental Interventions for Influenza We explore the contributions of different influenza transmission modes and how these might vary due to heterogeneity in strain, host, and environment.
>> Social Network Structure and the Determinants of Pathogen Genetic Diversity A model was developed describing pathogen evolution within a social network.