Eco-environmental signatures of danger to identify melioidosis-endemic hotzones
Abstract
Our objective is to identify and characterize environmental factors and the relationships between Bp and other ecosystem species, and to explore how these affect the presence and virulence of Bp, and consequently, the incidence of disease in humans and mammals. The aim of Task 1 is to investigate relationships between environmental conditions, strain diversity, and virulence in mammals. In Task 2, we employ parallel HTS metagenomic and metatranscriptomic analysis to identify predictors of endemicity as "signatures" of co-endemic fauna, followed by investigations of their associations with virulent Bp genotypes. The objective of Task 3 is to define the nature of various interactions between Bp and fauna. In Task 4, we will test our predictive and diagnostic tools from Tasks 1-3 on soil from endemic regions of the Americas, the Caribbean, Africa and Southeast Asia, some of which have previously hosted American military personnel, or are potential areas of future armed conflict. We will compare ecological signatures from geographically separate regions, incorporate our findings into a global model of Bp endemicity, and apply our biocontrol strategies to eradicate Bp from endemic soil
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Oct 04, 2018
- Source ID
- HDTRA11710015
Entities
People
- Christopher French
Organizations
- Defense Threat Reduction Agency
- University of California, Los Angeles