Doctoral Dissertation Research: Zoonotic Risks at the Human-Primate Interface: Behavior, Nutritional Status, and Immune Function

Purdue University, West Lafayette IN

Investigators

Abstract

This dissertation project will investigate how differences in human behavior, gender, subsistence patterns, nutrition, and immune function influence the transmission and progression of zoonotic illnesses from nonhuman primates, such as monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees, to human groups. The project's anthropological and primatological context and expertise provide a unique opportunity to understand these complex relationships among human groups who rely on forest resources but vary in terms of culture and nutritional access. In addition, improved understanding of the cultural, behavioral, and biological processes that promote novel zoonotic infections in humans helps inform scientific advancements and public health research on epidemics. The project will support training for a female graduate student and underrepresented groups in STEM research fields, and will foster international research, science outreach, and public health collaborations. This project takes place over a 15-month period in a protected forest reserve in the southwest corner of Central African Republic where human communities rely on wild meat and forest vegetables as primary sources of protein and nutrition, and where the diminishing availability of wildlife and other forest resources threaten food security and public health outcomes. The study focuses on a unique mix of communities and cultural groups to understand multiple factors that may influence zoonotic emergence -- human contact with nonhuman primates, varied nutritional access, increased food security, and increased population density. Researchers will use behavioral and dietary surveys, measurements of nutritional status, analysis of hemoglobin levels, and analysis of immune function to understand zoonotic risk. Zoonoses threaten global health and security and are linked to the HIV epidemic, Ebola outbreaks in West and Central Africa, and Zika outbreaks in South America. By providing insight on variation in zoonotic risk across a single population, this project can help develop more effective global health policies for preventing and controlling new epidemics.