Risk Assessment
Risk Assessment
Risk assessment of environmental viruses during extreme weather events
Extreme weather events like tornadoes and urban flooding pose a direct public health threat by introducing human pathogens into water sources and the environment. The old paradigm generally recognizes viruses as individual, free particles in transmission and infection, however, viruses in the real environment can interact with their microbial neighbors and the social life of the viruses determines their fate, transmission, infectivity, and inactivation in the environment. Thus, it is critical to assess the risk of environmental viruses during extreme weather events while considering the interactions with their microbial neighbors. The desired outcome of this project will immediately inform hazard identification and advance targeted interventions to protect individuals from infectious diseases during extreme weather events.