Epidemiology articles within Nature Communications

Featured

  • Article
    | Open Access

    In this study, the authors present an analysis of 247 full-genome SARS-CoV-2 sequences obtained from two communities in Wisconsin, USA, and report distinct patterns of viral spread. Their results suggest that patterns of SARS-CoV-2 transmission and spread may vary substantially, even between neighbouring communities.

    • Gage K. Moreno
    • , Katarina M. Braun
    •  & Thomas C. Friedrich

  • Article
    | Open Access

    In this study, Adi Stern and colleagues use full genome sequences of SARS-CoV-2 to look at the rate of infections in Israel. They report that social distancing had a significant effect on minimising the rate of transmission, and find evidence for transmission heterogeneity (superspreading events).

    • Danielle Miller
    • , Michael A. Martin
    •  & Adi Stern

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Here the authors analyze disease burden and clinical severity of COVID-19 during the first wave in Wuhan, China in comparison to past influenza virus pandemics and COVID-19 in the US and Canada. These estimates of symptomatic cases, medical consultations, hospitalizations and deaths should guide preparedness for this disease.

    • Juan Yang
    • , Xinhua Chen
    •  & Prof Hongjie Yu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Observationally, lower birthweight is a risk factor for cardiometabolic disease. Using Mendelian Randomization, the authors investigate whether maternal genetic factors that lower offspring birthweight also increase offspring cardiometabolic risk and show that the observational correlation is unlikely to be due to the intrauterine environment.

    • Gunn-Helen Moen
    • , Ben Brumpton
    •  & David M. Evans

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Since 1970, several cholera outbreaks caused by the “seventh pandemic” (7PET) lineage have been reported in Europe. Here, the authors demonstrate that the outbreaks were caused by repeated introductions of 7PET into Europe, rather than local environmental sources.

    • Mihaela Oprea
    • , Elisabeth Njamkepo
    •  & François-Xavier Weill

  • Article
    | Open Access

    There are a growing number of reports of neonatal SARS-CoV-2 infections. Here, De Luca and colleagues systematically analyse 176 published cases to better understand the route of transmission, as well as the clinical features and outcomes of neonatal COVID-19.

    • Roberto Raschetti
    • , Alexandre J. Vivanti
    •  & Daniele De Luca

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Healthcare workers may be at higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection than the general population. Here, the authors report 19% seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among 2,149 employees in a Swedish hospital. Seroprevalence was associated with patient contact and higher than the seroprevalence in the community in same time period.

    • Ann-Sofie Rudberg
    • , Sebastian Havervall
    •  & Charlotte Thålin

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Although SARS-CoV-2 has spread rapidly, the contribution of super-spreading events to transmission is unclear. Here, the authors show that the number of secondary infections arising from an individual infection in the early phase of the outbreak was highly skewed, indicating that super-spreading events occurred.

    • Liang Wang
    • , Xavier Didelot
    •  & Yuhai Bi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    COVID-19-related travel restrictions were imposed in China around the same time as major annual holiday migrations, with unknown combined impacts on mobility patterns. Here, the authors show that restructuring of the travel network in response to restrictions was temporary, whilst holiday-related travel increased pressure on healthcare services with lower capacity.

    • Hamish Gibbs
    • , Yang Liu
    •  & Rosalind M. Eggo

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Detailed knowledge of the characteristics of COVID-19 patients helps with public health planning. Here, the authors use routinely-collected data from seven databases in three countries to describe the characteristics of >30,000 patients admitted with COVID-19 and compare them with those admitted for influenza in previous years.

    • Edward Burn
    • , Seng Chan You
    •  & Patrick Ryan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Highly accurate antibody tests for SARS-CoV-2 are needed for surveillance in low-prevalence populations. Here, the authors find seroprevalence of less than 1% in two San Francisco Bay Area populations at the beginning of April, and that seroreactivity is generally predictive of in vitro neutralising activity.

    • Dianna L. Ng
    • , Gregory M. Goldgof
    •  & Charles Y. Chiu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    New York City is one of the areas most affected by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in the United States, and there has been large variation in rates of hospitalisation and death by city borough. Here, the authors show that boroughs with the largest reduction in daily commutes also had the lowest SARS-CoV-2 prevalence.

    • Stephen M. Kissler
    • , Nishant Kishore
    •  & Yonatan H. Grad

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Emergence of tigecycline-resistance tet(X) genes is of concern. Here, the authors determine tet(X) prevalence in more than 6,000 clinical Gram-negative bacterial isolates collected between 1994 to 2019 in hospitals in China and suggest that Flavobacteriaceae could be the potential ancestral source of the tigecycline resistance genes.

    • Rong Zhang
    • , Ning Dong
    •  & Sheng Chen

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Schizophrenia has been associated with increased risk of breast cancer, yet the risk of schizophrenia following breast cancer is unclear. Here, the authors show a bidirectional association between breast cancer and schizophrenia in Sweden and a shared genetic contribution to both diseases.

    • Donghao Lu
    • , Jie Song
    •  & Unnur A. Valdimarsdóttir

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Prediabetes has been associated with diabetes complications, but these relationships may be confounded. Here the authors show, using genetic data in causal inference analyses, that prediabetes raises risk of coronary heart disease, but not other diabetes complications.

    • Pascal M. Mutie
    • , Hugo Pomares-Millan
    •  & Paul W. Franks

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Influenza exposure in early childhood can affect the immune response to distinct viral strains later in life. Here, Gouma et al. show that contemporary 3c2.A H3N2 virus infections boost non-neutralizing H3N2 antibodies in middle-aged individuals, potentially leaving them vulnerable to recurrent infections.

    • Sigrid Gouma
    • , Kangchon Kim
    •  & Scott E. Hensley

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Estimating the extent of SARS-CoV-2 infection in a population is challenging due to the limitations of testing. Here, the authors estimate that the true number of infections in the United States in mid-April was up to 20 times higher than the number of confirmed cases.

    • Sean L. Wu
    • , Andrew N. Mertens
    •  & Jade Benjamin-Chung

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Identification of individuals at risk of severe COVID-19 disease could inform treatment and public health planning. Here, the authors develop and validate a risk prediction model for COVID-19 mortality in Israel by building a model for severe respiratory infection and recalibrating it using COVID-19 case fatality rates.

    • Noam Barda
    • , Dan Riesel
    •  & Noa Dagan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Genome sequencing can be used to infer pathogen transmission dynamics and inform public health responses. Here, the authors sequence >1,200 SARS-CoV-2 samples from Victoria, Australia and find genomic support for the effectiveness of social restrictions in reducing transmission.

    • Torsten Seemann
    • , Courtney R. Lane
    •  & Benjamin P. Howden

  • Article
    | Open Access

    COVID-19 disease is less common in children than adults, but the extent to which SARS-CoV-2 infections are missed through symptom-driven testing is not well understood. In this study, the authors show that approximately 1% of children seeking care for reasons other than COVID-19 at a Seattle hospital in March/April 2020 were seropositive for SARS-CoV-2.

    • Adam S. Dingens
    • , Katharine H. D. Crawford
    •  & Jesse D. Bloom

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The current Syrian conflict is considered a major humanitarian crisis. Here, the authors show a decline in population well-being with the onset of the conflict, and show how this decline compares to other populations experiencing wars, civil unrest or natural disasters.

    • Felix Cheung
    • , Amanda Kube
    •  & Gabriel M. Leung

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Cytokine storm seems to be a common feature of severe COVID-19 pathology. Here, the authors show a reduced rate of SARS-CoV2 positivity in a large population of patients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases if they are already being treated with cytokine or JAK inhibitors, indicating these treatments are safe to continue and are possibly protective against COVID19.

    • David Simon
    • , Koray Tascilar
    •  & Georg Schett

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Family-based study designs have been applied to resolve confounding by population stratification, dynastic effects and assortative mating in genetic association analyses. Here, Brumpton et al. describe theory and simulations for overcoming such biases in Mendelian randomization through within-family studies.

    • Ben Brumpton
    • , Eleanor Sanderson
    •  & Neil M. Davies

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Health care workers (HCW) are a high-risk population for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Here, the authors determine seroprevalence against SARS-CoV-2 in HCWs of a large Spanish reference hospital and find a cumulative prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection (presence of antibodies or past or current positive rRT-PCR) of 11%.

    • Alberto L. Garcia-Basteiro
    • , Gemma Moncunill
    •  & Carlota Dobaño

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mayaro virus (MAYV) is an emerging arbovirus, but cross-reactivity with other alphaviruses makes analysis of its epidemiology difficult. Here, the authors develop an analytical framework to assess MAYV epidemiology and find evidence for an important sylvatic cycle and seroprevalences of up to 18% in some areas of French Guiana.

    • Nathanaël Hozé
    • , Henrik Salje
    •  & Simon Cauchemez

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Impact of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV) in controlling carriage needs to be evaluated to inform vaccine policy. Here, Swarthout et al. show in a prospective rolling cross-sectional study in Malawi a high residual prevalence of vaccine-serotype S. pneumoniae 7 years after PCV introduction.

    • Todd D. Swarthout
    • , Claudio Fronterre
    •  & Robert S. Heyderman

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Multidrug resistance of the opportunistic pathogen Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is an increasing problem. Here, analyzing strains from 22 countries, the authors show that the S. maltophilia complex is divided into 23 monophyletic lineages and find evidence for intra-hospital transmission.

    • Matthias I. Gröschel
    • , Conor J. Meehan
    •  & Thomas A. Kohl

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Epidemiological studies have shown an association between sedentary behaviours and cardiovascular disease risk. Here, van de Vegte et al. perform GWAS for self-reported sedentary behaviours (TV watching, computer use, driving) and Mendelian randomization analyses to explore potential causal relationships with coronary artery disease.

    • Yordi J. van de Vegte
    • , M. Abdullah Said
    •  & Niek Verweij

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Incidence of food allergy in westernized populations is associated with low abundance of Prevotella. Here, the authors analyse the microbiome of a mother-infant prebirth cohort and find that maternal carriage, but not infant carriage, of P. copri during pregnancy predicts the absence of food allergy in the offspring.

    • Peter J. Vuillermin
    • , Martin O’Hely
    •  & Esther Bandala Sanchez

  • Article
    | Open Access

    In Mendelian randomization (MR) studies, one typically selects SNPs as instrumental variables that do not directly affect the outcome to avoid violation of MR assumptions. Here, Cho et al. present a framework, MR-TRYX, that leverages knowledge of such outliers of horizontal pleiotropy to identify putative causal relationships between exposure and outcome.

    • Yoonsu Cho
    • , Philip C. Haycock
    •  & Gibran Hemani

  • Article
    | Open Access

    HIV prevalence varies throughout Africa, but the contribution of migration remains unclear. Using population-based data from ~22,000 persons, Grabowski et al. show that HIV-positive migrants selectively migrate to high prevalence areas and that out-migrants from these areas geographically disperse.

    • Mary Kate Grabowski
    • , Justin Lessler
    •  & Ronald H. Gray

  • Article
    | Open Access

    HIV incidence among sex workers remains high in many settings. Here, the authors utilize individual-level data across ten countries in sub-Saharan Africa and suggest that increasingly punitive and non-protective laws are associated with HIV, and that stigmas and sex work laws may operate jointly in increasing HIV risk.

    • Carrie E. Lyons
    • , Sheree R. Schwartz
    •  & Stefan Baral

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mendelian randomization (MR) is a method for inferring causal relationships between risk factors and outcomes via associated genetic variants. Here, Burgess et al. develop the contamination mixture method which yields robust MR results in the presence of invalid instrumental variables and groups variants by their effect estimates.

    • Stephen Burgess
    • , Christopher N Foley
    •  & Joanna M. M. Howson

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Spread of antimicrobial-resistant (AR) bacteria is a global concern, but contributing factors remain unclear. Here, authors analyze distribution of AR bacteria in households from three ethnic groups in Tanzania and find that livelihood factors are more strongly associated with AR prevalence than antibiotic use.

    • Murugan Subbiah
    • , Mark A. Caudell
    •  & Douglas R. Call

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Heart failure is a complex syndrome that is associated with many different underlying risk factors. Here, to increase power, the authors jointly analyse cases of heart failure of different aetiologies in a genome-wide association study and identify 11 loci of which ten had not been previously reported.

    • Sonia Shah
    • , Albert Henry
    •  & R. Thomas Lumbers

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Multivariable Mendelian randomization (MR) extends the standard MR framework to consider multiple risk factors in a single model. Here, Zuber et al. propose MR-BMA, a Bayesian variable selection approach to identify the likely causal determinants of a disease from many candidate risk factors as for example high-throughput data sets.

    • Verena Zuber
    • , Johanna Maria Colijn
    •  & Stephen Burgess

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Here, Nelson et al. use amplicon next-generation sequencing of two P. falciparum polymorphic gene regions to investigate the genetic similarity of parasite populations across time and space in a pediatric cohort in Kenya. They identify both micro- and macro-scale structuring of malaria parasites in this high-transmission setting, which could inform future intervention strategies.

    • Cody S. Nelson
    • , Kelsey M. Sumner
    •  & Wendy P. O’Meara

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Relapse, reinfection and recrudescence can all cause recurrent infection after treatment of Plasmodium vivax malaria in endemic areas, but are difficult to distinguish. Here the authors show that they can be differentiated probabilistically and thereby demonstrate the high efficacy of primaquine treatment in preventing relapse.

    • Aimee R. Taylor
    • , James A. Watson
    •  & Nicholas J. White

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Here, the authors investigate the outcome of prevention services scale-up on HIV incidence in a South African large population-based HIV surveillance cohort with over a decade of follow-up and associate a 43% reduction in incidence to earlier male medical circumcision and increased levels of antiretroviral therapy coverage.

    • Alain Vandormael
    • , Adam Akullian
    •  & Frank Tanser

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Cervicovaginal inflammation and human papillomavirus (HPV) are separately associated with increased risk of HIV acquisition. Here the authors longitudinally profile 48 cervicovaginal cytokines and HPV status in a large observational HIV high-risk cohort, and show the same cytokines associate with HPV infection and HIV risk.

    • Lenine J. P. Liebenberg
    • , Lyle R. McKinnon
    •  & Quarraisha Abdool Karim

  • Article
    | Open Access

    From observational studies, alcohol consumption behaviours are known to be correlated in spouses. Here, Howe et al. use partners’ genotypic information in a Mendelian randomization framework and show that a SNP in the ADH1B gene associates with partner’s alcohol consumption, suggesting that alcohol consumption affects mate choice.

    • Laurence J. Howe
    • , Daniel J. Lawson
    •  & Gibran Hemani

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Alterations to the microbiome are now associated with various diseases. Here the authors analyze microbiomes from a large population based cohort and show positive correlations between abundance of Streptococcus spp. and osteoarthritis-related knee pain.

    • Cindy G. Boer
    • , Djawad Radjabzadeh
    •  & Joyce B. J. van Meurs

Browse broader subjects

Browse Epidemiology across other nature.com journals