Reducing the threat from high risk pathogens causing febrile illness in Liberia
Abstract
To test the hypothesis that a proportion of acute febrile illness in Liberia is misdiagnosed and potentially the result of emergent zoonotic pathogens of public health and proliferation risks, we will build local capacity using One Health approach to assess circulating pathogens and improve clinical and biosurveillance protocols for biological threat reduction. With the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), we will enroll patients presenting with acute fever at major hospitals in Monrovia and Bong County. Patient samples will be screened at the point of care per normal clinical protocols and tested at NPHIL for high-consequence viral, bacterial, and protozoal causes of fever via multiplexed specific real-time PCR, next generation sequencing, and convalescent serology. Laboratory results will be compared to the presumptive clinical diagnoses and both datasets will be compared to county surveillance records. We will interview patients to characterize their animal exposure and, with a local non-governmental organization and the Ministry of Agriculture, will sample domestic and peridomestic animals (rodents, bats, livestock, dogs) in the homes and communities of pathogen-positive patients to identify evidence of those pathogens in animals.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Dec 28, 2020
- Source ID
- HDTRA12010016
Entities
People
- William Karesh
Organizations
- Defense Threat Reduction Agency
- EcoHealth Alliance