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Epidemiology Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Epidemiology

Species Data And Vector Modeling: Evaluating Datasets For Improved Models Of Ixodes Ricinus Tick Distribution In Europe Under A Changing Climate, Steven Jones Dec 2022

Species Data And Vector Modeling: Evaluating Datasets For Improved Models Of Ixodes Ricinus Tick Distribution In Europe Under A Changing Climate, Steven Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

To increase capacity for monitoring and surveillance of tick-borne diseases, publicly available tick distribution and climate change datasets are required to create accurate predictive distribution models. It is difficult, however, to assess model accuracy and utility when using incomplete datasets.  The more recent development of comprehensive tick databases for Europe and availability of climate change scenarios from multiple IPCC Assessment Reports allows for improved modeling efforts. Multiple tick datasets were combined and three climate change projections were compared by predicting current and future distributions of Ixodes ricinus ticks in Europe using the MaxEnt species distribution model. Overall, much of Europe …


Using A One Health Approach For The Assessment Of Rabies Control In Rural Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, Ryan Lapenna Aug 2022

Using A One Health Approach For The Assessment Of Rabies Control In Rural Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, Ryan Lapenna

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Rabies, a viral zoonotic disease, is widespread in Zimbabwe, with human fatalities reported annually in the country. To supplement the Government’s effort on rabies control, the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust and Veterinarians for Animal Welfare Zimbabwe have joined forces to carry out dog rabies vaccinations in rural communities adjacent to the major tourist attraction of The Victoria Falls. A One Health approach was used to 1) determine the level of protective rabies antibodies among a sample of rural dogs and 2) collect information and describe the knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to rabies among dog owners. In 2020, blood was …


Tick Surveillance And Pathogen Detection In Eastern South Dakota, Holly E. Black Mar 2022

Tick Surveillance And Pathogen Detection In Eastern South Dakota, Holly E. Black

Honors Thesis

Tick-borne diseases threaten the health of humans, animals, and ecosystems, but surveillance efforts are lacking in some regions. Throughout 2019, 2020, and 2021, we conducted tick surveys aimed at determining the status of the black-legged tick (Ixodes scapularis), the American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis) and the lone star tick (Amblyoma americanum) in eastern South Dakota. Each year, ticks were collected using a flagging method and identified in the lab. A subset were tested for the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Dermacentor variabilis was the most commonly identified tick, …


Prevalence Of Rats And Rodent Borne Pathogens Across Post-Katrina New Orleans, Bruno Marco Ghersi Dec 2020

Prevalence Of Rats And Rodent Borne Pathogens Across Post-Katrina New Orleans, Bruno Marco Ghersi

Doctoral Dissertations

Disasters are happening at an increasingly higher rate and intensity a trend that is expected to continue as more humans migrate to coastal urban areas. Disasters, and as importantly, disaster recovery can affect how native and pest populations will recover. My aim was to improve understanding of disease risk by evaluating the socioecological conditions that have shaped commensal rat recovery and distribution, as well as the pathogens they carry, across New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. I first estimated relative abundance and distribution of commensal rats from rodent trapping conducted between mid-2014 and early-2017 across 96 sites in 10 areas of …