Movement behavior is an important contributor to habitat selection and its incorporation in disease risk models has been somewhat neglected. The habitat preferences of host individuals affect their probability of exposure to pathogens. If preference behavior can be incorporated in ecological niche models (ENMs) when data on pathogen distributions are available, then variation in such behavior may dramatically impact exposure risk. Here we use data from the anthrax endemic system of Etosha National Park, Namibia, to demonstrate how integrating inferred movement behavior alters the construction of disease risk maps. We used a Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) model that associated soil, bioclimatic, and vegetation variables with the best available pathogen presence data collected at anthrax carcass sites to map areas of most likely
Zebra anthrax carcass site pathogen and soil data from Namibia, 2010-2021
Datasets collected from monitored zebra anthrax carcass sites in Etosha National Park, Namibia, 2010-2021. One data file describes the anthrax mortality, soil characterization of the carcass sites and details on the types and timing of different sampling efforts at these sites. The other data file is counts of Bacillus anthracis spores in surface soils collected annually at these carcass sites.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2106221
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10422223
- Publisher / Repository:
- U.S. Geological Survey
- Date Published:
- Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
- ["Wildlife Disease"]
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Abstract Bacillus anthracis (the causative bacterium of anthrax) persistence. We then used a hidden Markov model (HMM) to distinguish foraging and non-foraging behavioral states along the movement tracks of nine zebra (Equus quagga ) during the 2009 and 2010 anthrax seasons. The resulting tracks, decomposed on the basis of the inferred behavioral state, formed the basis of step-selection functions (SSFs) that used the MaxEnt output as a potential predictor variable. Our analyses revealed different risks of exposure during different zebra behavioral states, which were obscured when the full movement tracks were analyzed without consideration of the underlying behavioral states of individuals. Pathogen (or vector) distribution models may be misleading with regard to the actual risk faced by host animal populations when specific behavioral states are not explicitly accounted for in selection analyses. To more accurately evaluate exposure risk, especially in the case of environmentally transmitted pathogens, selection functions could be built for each identified behavioral state and then used to assess the comparative exposure risk across relevant states. The scale of data collection and analysis, however, introduces complexities and limitations for consideration when interpreting results. -
Bacillus anthracis , the etiological agent of anthrax, is a well-established model organism. For B. anthracis and most other infectious diseases, knowledge regarding transmission and infection parameters in natural systems, in large part, comprises data gathered from closely controlled laboratory experiments. Fatal, natural anthrax infections transmit the bacterium through new host−pathogen contacts at carcass sites, which can occur years after death of the previous host. For the period between contact and death, all of our knowledge is based upon experimental data from domestic livestock and laboratory animals. Here we use a noninvasive method to explore the dynamics of anthrax infections, by evaluating the terminal diversity of B. anthracis in anthrax carcasses. We present an application of population genetics theory, specifically, coalescence modeling, to intrainfection populations of B. anthracis to derive estimates for the duration of the acute phase of the infection and effective population size converted to the number of colony-forming units establishing infection in wild plains zebra ( Equus quagga ). Founding populations are small, a few colony-forming units, and infections are rapid, lasting roughly between 1 d and 3 d in the wild. Our results closely reflect experimental data, showing that small founding populations progress acutely, killing the host within days. We believe this method is amendable to other bacterial diseases from wild, domestic, and human systems.more » « less
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Hopkins, Jack (Ed.)Abstract Carrion represents an important resource for carnivores. Examining competition for carrion in a risk–reward framework allows for a better understanding of how predator guilds compete for and benefit from carrion. We used trail camera data to compare wintertime carrion use and vigilance behavior of four carnivores in Denali National Park and Preserve. We found that carrion use was dominated by wolves (Canis lupus) and wolverines (Gulo gulo), followed by red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and coyotes (Canis latrans). Wolves and wolverines were twice as likely to visit a carcass as foxes and coyotes, and their visits were longer and more numerous. Our results suggest scavenging animals reduced their risk exposure primarily by reducing their use of carrion, with some evidence of increased vigilance at busy sites. We found that carrion use and behavior at carcass sites were influenced by the mortality type of the carcass, the age of the carcass, and the long-term intensity of wolf use in the area. Our results also suggest that wolves are the “top scavenger,” and indicate that intraguild competition for carrion strongly affects which species benefit from carrion, with larger and more aggressive species dominating.more » « less
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null (Ed.)Background In clinical research, important variables may be collected from multiple data sources. Physical pooling of patient-level data from multiple sources often raises several challenges, including proper protection of patient privacy and proprietary interests. We previously developed an SAS-based package to perform distributed regression—a suite of privacy-protecting methods that perform multivariable-adjusted regression analysis using only summary-level information—with horizontally partitioned data, a setting where distinct cohorts of patients are available from different data sources. We integrated the package with PopMedNet, an open-source file transfer software, to facilitate secure file transfer between the analysis center and the data-contributing sites. The feasibility of using PopMedNet to facilitate distributed regression analysis (DRA) with vertically partitioned data, a setting where the data attributes from a cohort of patients are available from different data sources, was unknown. Objective The objective of the study was to describe the feasibility of using PopMedNet and enhancements to PopMedNet to facilitate automatable vertical DRA (vDRA) in real-world settings. Methods We gathered the statistical and informatic requirements of using PopMedNet to facilitate automatable vDRA. We enhanced PopMedNet based on these requirements to improve its technical capability to support vDRA. Results PopMedNet can enable automatable vDRA. We identified and implemented two enhancements to PopMedNet that improved its technical capability to perform automatable vDRA in real-world settings. The first was the ability to simultaneously upload and download multiple files, and the second was the ability to directly transfer summary-level information between the data-contributing sites without a third-party analysis center. Conclusions PopMedNet can be used to facilitate automatable vDRA to protect patient privacy and support clinical research in real-world settings.more » « less
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The Bangladesh Environment and Migration Survey (BEMS) collects detailed retrospective information about migration trips in southwest Bangladesh, including the first, last, and second-to-last to internal destinations, India, and other international destinations. BEMS collects information about the year, origin, destination, and duration of all trips. Furthermore, BEMS includes information on migration and livelihood histories, socioeconomic conditions, agricultural resources and practices, disasters and perceptions about environment, and self-reported health.
Dataset 1 is a household-level file with information about household composition, economic and migratory activity of household members, land ownership/usage, business ownership, household environmental perceptions, environmental conditions, agricultural activities, and physical and psychological health/well-being of household members. Dataset 2 is an individual-level file containing details of internal and international migration trips, as well as measures of economic and social activity during those trips. It also contains information provided by household heads, spouses, and other migrants in the household. Dataset 3 is an individual-level data file that provides general demographic information and brief migration history for each member of a surveyed household. It also includes health information for the head of household and spouse.
The purpose of the Bangladesh Environment and Migration Survey (BEMS) is to understand patterns and processes of contemporary internal and international migration in Bangladesh. The project derives from a multi-disciplinary research effort that will generate data on the characteristics and behavior of Bangladeshi migrants and non-migrants and the communities in which they live, and examine whether and how environmental stressors (e.g., salinity, riverbank erosion) affect patterns of migration in this region. The household ethnosurvey is administered to self-identified household heads and spouses in randomly selected households. After gathering social, demographic, and economic information on households and their members, interviewers will collect basic information on each person's first, 2nd to last, and last (or most recent) internal and international migration trips. From household heads and spouses, they will compile migration histories and administer a detailed series of questions about a selection of these trips, focusing on economic livelihoods, methods of moving, connections to other migrants, and use of health and school services. In addition to detailed migration histories, the BEMS will collect information about household wealth, physical conditions of households and communities, and perceptions of environmental conditions. It will also gather some self-reported health information about household members, such as recent illnesses, use of health services, height and weight, and diet. The BEMS is closely modeled on the sampling design and ethnosurvey used in the Mexican Migration Project. The BEMS data were collected in 20 research sites from a random sample of 200 households in each site in 2019. BEMS data include a total of 4,000 households in communities broadly covering the southwest region of Bangladesh. Households in southwest Bangladesh. Smallest Geographic Unit: Administrative regionFor more information about this study, please visit the ISEE Bangladesh project website.
