Yale University.
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Center for Eco-Epidemiology

   
Director: Durland Fish, Ph.D.
Professor of Epidemiology
Dept. of Epidemiology and Public Health
Yale School of Medicine
60 College St. P.O. Box 208034
New Haven, CT 06520

Announcements: 

New Course offered by Maria Diuk-Wasser for Fall 2009:

Ecology and epidemiology of vector-borne and zoonotic diseases

EMD 572a/F&ES 90004a

Click here for syllabus

Forums in Eco-Epidemiology:

Yale Institute for Biospheric Studies Center for Eco-Epidemiology (YIBSCEE) sponsors a Forum Series on topics that integrate ecology and epidemiology to address contemporary issues in environment and human health. Each Forum has been videotaped in its entirety and is available for viewing at this site. A total of 47 lectures is currently available.  These lectures are suitable for class assignments or research reviews, but content is not copyrighted or considered published and therefore should not be cited or referenced in any publication.

Zoonoses:  Diseases from Nature

April 3, 2009 - Winslow Auditorium, Yale School of Medicine

Pathogens transmitted to humans from wildlife constitute the most important source of emerging infections threatening public health throughout the world.  This forum included participants from two previous international meetings on zoonoses:  The Environment and Human Health Workshop at the National Zoonoses Centre at University of Liverpool in April 2007 and 2008, and the Fifth International Conference in Emerging Zoonoses held in Limassol, Cypress in November 2007.  The Liverpool workshop participants were primarily medical research and public health scientists.  The purpose of this conference is to facilitate increased communication and exchange of ideas between researchers from the public health and disease ecology communities who are working on zoonotic pathogens of humans. 
To view videos of talks, click here.


Biodiversity and Human Health

September 4, 2006

Baird Auditorium, National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC

The loss of biodiversity is accelerating while new infectious diseases appear to be emerging and reemerging at a faster rate. Research on the links between these two processes can have an important impact on our view of biodiversity, the services provided by natural ecosystems, and how we manage them. This interdisciplinary forum of researchers, practitioners, and decision makers in ecology, public health, remote sensing, and the social sciences discusses the state of the science, refine research priorities, and discuss how to integrate existing data into a monitoring and risk-forecasting network that aims to prevent or significantly mitigate risks of human disease and threats to biodiversity around the world. Co-sponsored by EPA, Smithsonian Institution, and World Conservation Union.
To view videos of talks, click here.


Avian Reservoirs of Human Pathogens

April 21, 2006
Harkness Auditorium, Yale School of Medicine

The threat from animal pathogens transmissible to humans is at an unprecedented increase worldwide. Epidemics of Lyme disease and West Nile virus in the US, and the potential for world-wide pandemic avian influenza have revealed critical weaknesses in our knowledge of how these diseases emerge, spread, and are maintained in nature. Microbial pathogens transmitted from birds to humans, either directly or through intermediate vectors (ticks and mosquitoes), are of particular concern because birds are ubiquitous, locally abundant, and can move pathogens over long distances quickly. The involvement of birds in public health threats to humans poses significant management dilemmas for wildlife biologists and human disease epidemiologists that are infrequently addressed together. The objective of this interdisciplinary forum is to provide an opportunity for communication and discussion among the disciplines of microbiology, ornithology, entomology, epidemiology, and conservation biology in order to identify needs for advancing efforts to understand and mitigate disease risk caused by microbial pathogens humans share with avian wildlife.
To view videos of talks, click here.


Climate and Disease

December 9-10, 2005

Luce Hall Auditorium, Yale University

Global climate change and emerging disease threats are among the most pressing issues facing humankind.  Much speculation has developed concerning the relationships between events, but what is really known about cause and effect?  This Forum addresses the current state of our knowledge on the relationship between climate and disease by bringing together a group of academic and government scientists with international experience in climate/disease research.  A range of topics is presented that demonstrate the need, capacity and benefits of understanding how climate influences risk for infectious diseases in humans.

To view videos of talks, click here


OVERVIEW

Yale Institute for Biospheric Studies (YIBS) serves as a principal focus for Yale University's research and training efforts in the environmental sciences and forms intellectual centers for research and education that address fundamental questions that will form the ability to generate solutions to the biosphere's most critical environmental problems. Health issues are among the most relevant environmental problems of today, and include both human health and ecosystem health. Solutions to these problems are complicated by a significant intellectual gap which exists between the medical discipline of epidemiology and the environmental discipline of ecology. Medical epidemiology lacks a comprehensive understanding of natural environmental processes that influence disease agents, and environmental science lacks the sound methodology and advanced technology of contemporary epidemiological investigation. The goal of the YIBS Center for Eco-Epidemiology (YIBSCEE) is to merge the boundaries between the medical and environmental sciences, and in so doing, create opportunities at Yale for research and training in the epidemiology of agents affecting both human health and the natural environment.

The Center's goal is achieved through an interdisciplinary effort among participating Yale faculty.  YIBSCEE faculty includes representatives from three schools (School of Medicine, School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences), three Departments (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Epidemiology and Public Health, and Internal Medicine), and three Divisions within the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health (Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases, Environmental Health, and Biostatistics).

Activities of YIBSCEE include symposia and seminar series on a wide range of contemporary topics relating to environment and health which are open to the Yale community. These activities form the basis for the creation of new interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate courses. YIBSCEE also coordinates existing curricula among participating faculty to broaden scope and improve content. In addition, the center provides a forum and resources for planning and acquisition of extramural funding for interdisciplinary training and research in eco-epidemiology at Yale.

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INTRODUCTION

Borrelia Human society is continuously threatened by chemical, physical and biological agents emanating from both the natural and man made environment that directly affect survival, health, and quality of life. Effective mitigation of these threats requires basic knowledge from a wide range of disciplines within the general area of environmental science. Because of its roots in the human medical sciences, the science of epidemiology focuses only on the human health outcomes associated with exposures to environmental stressors and agents. Epidemiology does not typically draw upon disciplines in the natural environmental sciences to consider the role of natural ecosystems as sources of human exposure to hazardous agents. Solutions for many of today's epidemiological problems require knowledge from several disciplines which are outside the mainstream of classic research and training in traditional medical schools and schools of public health. There is an urgent need for an interdisciplinary approach that will strengthen our intellectual capacity to address the environmental processes through which harmful agents threaten human existence and welfare. Likewise, there is also a need to assess the impact of such agents on the ecosystem, both directly, and indirectly through results of mitigation against human threats. The YIBS Center for Eco-Epidemiology fulfills these needs by providing an opportunity for faculty and students to participate in a cross-disciplinary effort between the medical and natural environmental sciences. Yale provides an unusual academic environment for this center as few academic institutions in the U.S. have expertise in both disciplines on the same campus.

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GOAL

The major goal of YIBSCEE is to serve as a platform for the integration of epidemiology and environmental science at Yale. The Center enhances opportunities for intellectual exchange and program development by providing a forum and resources for faculty and student interaction that results in increased interdisciplinary participation and visibility. The ultimate goal of the center is to merge the boundaries between the medical and environmental sciences which will enhance research and training in the epidemiology of agents affecting both human health and the natural environment.

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ACTIVITIES

Dominic AbromeiladsThere are a wide range of critical environmental questions and issues that are relevant to the goals of the proposed center. YIBSCEE focuses upon issues that are truly interdisciplinary and not currently addressed in existing research or training programs at Yale. Center activities build upon and expand existing independent efforts among faculty to interact effectively and form a cohesive group with common intellectual pursuits. These activities include the coordination of existing course instruction and training opportunities, the sponsorship of YIBCSEE forums and seminars, and the development of new courses.

Several activities that have been independently initiated by participating center faculty serve as examples of an interdisciplinary curriculum in eco-epidemiology.

The success of these activities have been enhanced through increased dialogue with participating faculty and financial support for new activities from YIBS.

Courses:

Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Agents (EEB720a/EMD544a)

This course provides an interdisciplinary view of infections diseases. It is taught by Paul Turner (EEB) with guest lectures by D. Fish and M. Diuk-Wasser of EPH. This course was hugely successful its premier year with more than 70 students (mostly undergraduate) enrolled. Observing the Earth From Space (FES 506b, EMD 548b, GG362b) is a remote sensing course offered spring of each year by the Geology Department and is designed to teach students how to use satellite imagery for environmental applications. The course is attended by 1-3 EPH students each year and a lecture is given on remote sensing applications in epidemiology. GIS Applications in Epidemiology and Public Health (BIS511a) is offered each fall semester by the Biostatistics Division of EPH and is taught by T. Holford. The course has attracted students from FES and Yale College and is designed to teach students how to collect and analyze spatial data on the environment and disease cases. This course, together with the remote sensing course, provides a valuable training sequence for health applications of environmental data that is not offered at any other academic medical institution. Modeling the Epidemiology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases (EMD 565a) is offered each year by A. Galvani. This course is designed for students to develop an understanding of the ways mathematical and computational modeling can be used to explore the epidemiology and evolutionary ecology of infectious diseases. Interdisciplinary approaches include combining epidemiology with population genetics, evolutionary biology, and economics.

Ecology and epidemiology of vector-borne and zoonotic diseases EMD 572a/F&ES 90004a

Coordinator: Maria Diuk-Wasser        email: maria.diuk@yale.edu

Teaching Assistant: Jennifer Simpson          email: jennifer.simpson@yale.edu

Course time: Tuesday and Thursday 3:00 – 4:20 pm LEPH 126

Office Hours: By appointment

Course description: Diseases transmitted to humans by arthropods (vector-borne) or animal reservoirs (zoonotic) constitute the majority of globally (re)emerging infectious diseases. The purpose of this course is to explore factors underlying the risk to humans of acquiring vector-borne and zoonotic diseases (VBZD) like malaria, dengue, West Nile virus, Lyme disease, rabies, hantavirus, etc. Students will learn how human risk for these diseases can be described and predicted by understanding the ecology of vectors and reservoirs and the factors allowing for maintenance and transmission of pathogens. The course will utilize a combination of lectures, discussion of primary literature, practical exercises on risk mapping, and guest speakers.

Course learning objectives:

Upon completing this course, students will be able to:

  • Describe the ways in which pathogen, host, vector and environment interactions influence the transmission of infectious agents.
  • Explain how these interactions can be modeled and mapped.
  • Discuss major themes in VBZD ecology and epidemiology including pathogen emergence and global circulation patterns.
  • Describe the ecology and epidemiology of major vector-borne and zoonotic diseases

 

Course format:

This course will utilize a combination of lectures, discussions of research articles, lab exercises and guest speakers.  Class will meet twice a week. Each meeting will consist of a combination of lecture and discussion of assigned readings or lab exercise.

Course Website:                    

Yale Classes v.2 System: http://classesv2.yale.edu

EPH, Fall 2009 courses, EMD 572b, F&ES 90004

Reading Materials:

There is no textbook for the class. Reading materials will be placed on the course website.

Joint Training Programs

PR Dengue Sampling.jpg

FES/EPH Joint Masters Degree Program

The M.F.-M.P.H.,M.F.S.-M.P.H. and M.E.S.-M.P.H. are degrees for students who are interested in understanding the environmental context of public health. These programs allow students flexibility in designing their curriculum, although students must satisfy minimum residency requirements and minimum credit hours in both schools. This program is a three-year effort and is unique among US institutions offering degrees in public health.

Internships and laboratory rotations Summer internships have been taken by a number of FES (master degree) and EEB (undergraduate) students in EPH, and EEB Ph.D. students have completed laboratory rotations in EPH. Similarly, EPH Ph.D. students take laboratory rotations in FES and EEB. This type of exchange has provided valuable interdisciplinary experience for students with training in ecology and environmental science by exposing them to contemporary epidemiological research methods.

CDC Fellowship Training Program in Vector-Borne Diseases The Division of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases (EMD) in EPH has just completed a 5 year training grant from CDC, specifically for training in vector-borne diseases with an emphasis on field studies. A total of 20 faculty participated in this training grant, including 2 from FES and 3 from EEB. The grant supported eleven Ph.D. students which were shared among EPH, FES, and EEB.  Students conducted laboratory rotations and select dissertation committee advisors freely among EPH, FES, and EEB faculty. Students participated in a field trip to the Caribbean over spring break. CDC discontinued the program in 2007 and we are currently seeking other training grant opportunities to replace it.

Seminar Series The Center for EcoEpidemiology sponsors interdisciplinary seminars in Disease Ecology recent guest speakers have included Klaus Kurtenbach of the Biodiversity Program at Imperial College, London and Tom Scott, Director of the Center for Vector-Borne Diseases at U.C. Davis, and Sarah Randolph, Dept. of Zoology, Oxford University and Xiangming Xiao, Complex Systems Research Center, Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire.

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CENTER PARTICIPANTS

The following faculty from the School of Public Health (EPH), School of Medicine, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies (FES) and Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EEB) participate in YIBSCEE (listed alphabetically).

James E. Childs, D. Sc. Senior Research Scientist, EPH

Maria Diuk-Wasser, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, EPH

Dr. Diuk-Wasser is an infectious disease ecologist with research interests in the roles of wildlife and environmental change in the emergence of new infectious diseases affecting public health. She is currently working on Lyme disease and West Nile virus and has past experience working on malaria in Africa. Her landscape epidemiology approach to studying the ecology of infectious diseases relies heavily upon the use of remote sensing, GIS, and spatial

Durland Fish, Ph.D., Professor of Epidemiology, EPH

Professor Fish's research interests are in the areas of ecology and prevention of vector-borne infectious diseases. Recent emphasis has been on tick-borne pathogens causing Lyme disease and human ehrlichiosis and mosquito-borne West Nile virus. Current projects include natural and artificial regulation of vector populations, vector competence for viral and bacterial pathogens, co-infection and transmissions of multiple pathogens, geographic and spatial analysis of epidemiological data, and the use of satellite imagery to predict vector-borne disease risk.

Alison Galvani, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, EPH

Dr. Galvani is interested in integrating evolutionary ecology and epidemiology in order to generate predictions that could not be made by either discipline alone. This interdisciplinary approach has widespread potential for answering evolutionary questions, explaining empirical observations and informing public health policy. Professor Galvani has applied this approach to the study of HIV, influenza, SARS and helminth parasites.

Theodore Holford, Ph.D., Susan Dwight Bliss Professor of Public Health, Head, Division of Biostatistics, EPH

Professor Holford's primary research interests are in the development and application of statistical methods in public health and medicine. One topic he has especially focused on recently has been how trends in cancer epidemiology are described, especially through the use of age-period-cohort models and geographic information systems.

Brian Leaderer, Ph.D., The Susan Dwight Bliss Professor, Vice Chair, Dept of Epidemiology and Public Health and Deputy Dean of Public Health

Professor Leaderer's research interests are in the area of assessing exposures to air contaminants and assessing the health impact resulting from those exposures in both controlled human and epidemiological studies. Within the context of assessing exposures, his work includes developing a theoretical framework for doing exposure assessment, determining the type and quantity of health related contaminants emitted from sources, assessing environmental concentrations and the factors impacting those concentrations, developing monitoring and modeling techniques and formulating strategies to assess exposures in epidemiologic studies.

Peter Rabinowitz, M.D., M.P.H. Assistant Professor of Medicine.

Dr. Rabinowitz is in the Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Dept. of Internal Medicine. He has interests in exploring the use of sentinel animals for detecting and evaluating human health hazards in the environment and in developing innovative strategies for the investigation of sentinel events in wildlife populations. He has already developed a protocol and a proposal for developing an independent Yale center for these studies.

David Skelly, Ph.D., Professor of Ecology, FES

Professor Skelly is interested in the ecology of disease. His research is focused on understanding the ways in which environmental context influence transmission of disease and the impacts of infection. He is also researching the role of adaptive host behavior in regulating patterns of infection and is involved in research to understand the role of pathogens in amphibian deformities.

Stephen Stearns, Ph.D., Edward P. Bass Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Chair, Dept. of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Professor Stearns is interested in Darwinian medicine and in the life history consequences of infections and disease. He has published a book on “Evolution in health and Disease” and is founding editor of the Journal of Evolutionary Biology.

Paul Turner, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Ecology and Evolution, EEB

Dr. Turner uses microorganisms (RNA viruses, DNA viruses,bacteria) as model systems to address hypotheses in ecological and evolutionary theory, especially questions regarding the evolution of genetic exchange (sex), virus ecology and evolution, host-parasite interactions, and the evolution of infectious disease. He uses an inter-disciplinary approach to investigate these processes, employing techniques from microbiology, population genetics, molecular biology and mathematical modeling.

John Wargo, Ph.D. Professor of Environmental Risk Analysis and Policy, Director of the Environment and Health Initiative, FES

Professor Wargo's current research explores spatial, temporal, and demographic distribution of environmental health risks, providing a basis for evaluating past environmental and natural resource management policies, and for suggesting legal reform. He has conducted extensive research on childhood exposure to complex mixtures of toxic substances, especially pesticides.

 

Tongzhang Zheng, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, EPH

Dr. Zheng’s research interests have been in the area of cancer epidemiology and environmental epidemiology. He is the Principal Investigator for a case-control study of female breast cancer in Connecticut, USA, which investigates the association between environmental exposure to organochlorine compounds, genetic polymorphisms and breast cancer risk

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YALE INSTITUTE FOR BIOSPHERIC STUDIES
Jeffrey Park, Director
Rose Rita Riccitelli, Assistant Director
LaToya Sealy, Sr. Administrative Assistant
Environmental Science Center, Room 132
21 Sachem St., P.O. Box 208105
New Haven, CT 06520-8105
Phone: (203) 432-9856 · Fax: (203) 432-9927