SARS-COV-2, the virus that causes Coronavirus Disease (COVID) emerged in China in late 2019. It rapidly spread worldwide and is now causing a pandemic with high morbidity and mortality. Because SARS-COV-2 is a novel virus in humans, there are many fundamental knowledge gaps in our understanding of the virus and disease. To undertake a detailed investigation of SARS-COV-2 in Nicaragua, we propose to add on SARS-COV-2 aims to our existing Household Influenza Cohort Study. The research questions addressed build naturally on the infrastructure currently in place to conduct the Household Cohort Study. Specifically, we will add SARS-COV-2 testing on to samples that are already collected through our ongoing cohort study, add the collection of blood samples around SARS-COV-2 infection in participants, and perform a household SARS- COV-2 transmission study. This proposal addresses major gaps in knowledge on COVID natural history and transmission. It is thus timely and well-poised to have substantial public health and scientific impact.
Influenza is a major problem worldwide, and despite decades of research, many questions remain about the factors that affect transmission, especially in the tropics where data on household transmission is scarce and the modes of transmission may differ from temperate settings. Here we propose to perform a household cohort study of influenza in Nicaragua to improve our understanding of the mechanisms that contribute to influenza virus transmission in tropical developing countries. Better knowledge of the viral, environmental, climatic, and host factors that influence influenza transmission in tropical settings is essential for public health efforts to control the disease.
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| Zambrana, José Victor; Bustos Carrillo, Fausto; Burger-Calderon, Raquel et al. (2018) Seroprevalence, risk factor, and spatial analyses of Zika virus infection after the 2016 epidemic in Managua, Nicaragua. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 115:9294-9299 |
