SARS-CoV-2 Infection in School Settings, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, 2021-2022.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, widespread school closures were implemented globally based on the assumption that transmission among children in the school environment is common. However, evidence regarding secondary infection rates by school type and level of contact is lacking. Our study estimated the frequency of SARS-CoV-2 infection in school settings by examining the positivity rate according to school type and level of contact by using data from a large-scale school-based PCR project conducted in Okinawa, Japan, during 2021-2022.

SARS-CoV-2 IgG seroprevalence in the Okinawa Main Island and remote islands in Okinawa, Japan, 2020-2021.

We estimated the seroprevalence of anti-SARS-COV-2 IgG in different island groups in Okinawa. A cross-sectional sero-survey was repeated in three periods between July 2020 and February 2021. A total of 2683 serum samples were collected from six referral medical centers, each covering a separate region in Okinawa.

Advancing Public Health Surveillance: Integrating Modeling and GIS in the Wastewater-Based Epidemiology of Viruses, a Narrative Review.

This review article will present a comprehensive examination of the use of modeling, spatial analysis, and geographic information systems (GIS) in the surveillance of viruses in wastewater. With the advent of global health challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic, wastewater surveillance has emerged as a crucial tool for the early detection and management of viral outbreaks. This review will explore the application of various modeling techniques that enable the prediction and understanding of virus concentrations and spread patterns in wastewater systems.

Dynamics of Neisseria gonorrhoeae transmission among female sex workers and clients: A mathematical modeling study.

Background: This study aimed to examine the transmission dynamics of Neisseria gonorrhoeae (NG) in heterosexual sex work networks (HSWNs) and the impact of variation in sexual behavior and interventions on NG epidemiology.

Methods: The study employed an individual-based mathematical model to simulate NG transmission dynamics in sexual networks involving female sex workers (FSWs) and their clients, primarily focusing on the Middle East and North Africa region. A deterministic model was also used to describe NG transmission from clients to their spouses.

Assessment of fever screening at airports in detecting domestic passengers infected with SARS-CoV-2, 2020-2022, Okinawa prefecture, Japan.

Background: While airport screening measures for COVID-19 infected passengers at international airports worldwide have been greatly relaxed, observational studies evaluating fever screening alone at airports remain scarce. The purpose of this study is to retrospectively assess the effectiveness of fever screening at airports in preventing the influx of COVID-19 infected persons.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective epidemiological analysis of fever screening implemented at 9 airports in Okinawa Prefecture from May 2020 to March 2022.

Understanding dynamics and overlapping epidemiologies of HIV, HSV-2, chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis in sexual networks of men who have sex with men.

Introduction: We aimed to investigate the overlapping epidemiologies of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis in sexual networks of men who have sex with men (MSM), and to explore to what extent the epidemiology of one sexually transmitted infection (STI) relates to or differs from that of another STI.

Methods: An individual-based Monte Carlo simulation model was employed to simulate the concurrent transmission of STIs within diverse sexual networks of MSM. The model simulated sexual partnering, birth, death, and STI transmission within each specific sexual network.

Human movement avoidance decisions during Coronavirus disease 2019 in Japan.

Understanding host behavioral change in response to epidemics is important to forecast the disease dynamics. To predict the behavioral change relevant to the epidemic situation (e.g.

Extraction of the CDRH3 sequence of the mouse antibody repertoire selected upon influenza virus infection by subtraction of the background antibody repertoire.

Unlabelled: Historically, antibody reactivity to pathogens and vaccine antigens has been evaluated using serological measurements of antigen-specific antibodies. However, it is difficult to evaluate all antibodies that contribute to various functions in a single assay, such as the measurement of the neutralizing antibody titer. Bulk antibody repertoire analysis using next-generation sequencing is a comprehensive method for analyzing the overall antibody response; however, it is unreliable for estimating antigen-specific antibodies due to individual variation.

Impact of healthcare capacity disparities on the COVID-19 vaccination coverage in the United States: A cross-sectional study.

Background: The impact of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign in the US has been hampered by a substantial geographical heterogeneity of the vaccination coverage. Several studies have proposed vaccination hesitancy as a key driver of the vaccination uptake disparities. However, the impact of other important structural determinants such as local disparities in healthcare capacity is virtually unknown.

Future behaviours decision-making regarding travel avoidance during COVID-19 outbreaks.

Human behavioural changes are poorly understood, and this limitation has been a serious obstacle to epidemic forecasting. It is generally understood that people change their respective behaviours to reduce the risk of infection in response to the status of an epidemic or government interventions. We must first identify the factors that lead to such decision-making to predict these changes.

Measuring impact of vaccination among wildlife: The case of bait vaccine campaigns for classical swine fever epidemic among wild boar in Japan.

Understanding the impact of vaccination in a host population is essential to control infectious diseases. However, the impact of bait vaccination against wildlife diseases is difficult to evaluate. The vaccination history of host animals is generally not observable in wildlife, and it is difficult to distinguish immunity by vaccination from that caused by disease infection.

HIV incidence and impact of interventions among female sex workers and their clients in the Middle East and north Africa: a modelling study.

Background: The incidence of HIV infection among female sex workers and their clients in the Middle East and north Africa is not well known. We aimed to assess HIV incidence, the contribution of heterosexual sex work networks to these numbers, and the effect of interventions by use of mathematical modelling.

Methods: In this modelling study, we developed a novel, individual-based model to simulate HIV epidemic dynamics in heterosexual sex work networks.

Usefulness of a 3D-printing air sampler for capturing live airborne bacteria and exploring the environmental factors that can influence bacterial dynamics.

We created a handmade 3D-printed air sampler to effectively collect live airborne bacteria, and determined which environmental factors influenced the bacteria. Bacterial colony forming units (CFUs) in the air samples (n = 37) were monitored by recording the environmental changes occurring over time, then determining the presence/absence of correlations among such changes. The bacterial CFUs changed sharply and were significantly correlated with the DNA concentrations, indicating that the captured bacteria made up most of the airborne bacteria.

Analytic Characterization of the Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2 Epidemic in the United States, 1950-2050.

Background: We analytically characterized the past, present, and future levels and trends of the national herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) epidemic in the United States.

Methods: A population-level mathematical model was constructed to describe HSV-2 transmission dynamics and was fitted to the data series of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

Results: Over 1950-2050, antibody prevalence (seroprevalence) increased rapidly from 1960, peaking at 19.

Immunization Coverage and Antibody Retention against Rabies in Domestic Dogs in Lusaka District, Zambia.

Rabies remains endemic in Zambia. Despite conducting canine vaccinations in Lusaka district, the vaccination coverage and actual seropositivity in the dog population in Lusaka district are rarely evaluated. This study estimated the seropositivity-based immunization coverage in the owned dog population in Lusaka district using the expanded program on immunization cluster survey method.

Age-dependent association between SARS-CoV-2 cases reported by passive surveillance and viral load in wastewater.

The actual number of individuals infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is difficult to estimate using a case-reporting system (i.e., passive surveillance) alone because of asymptomatic infection.

Potent priming by inactivated whole influenza virus particle vaccines is linked to viral RNA uptake into antigen presenting cells.

Current detergent or ether-disrupted split vaccines (SVs) for influenza do not always induce adequate immune responses, especially in young children. This contrasts with the whole virus particle vaccines (WPVs) originally used against influenza that were immunogenic in both adults and children but were replaced by SV in the 1970s due to concerns with reactogenicity. In this study, we re-evaluated the immunogenicity of WPV and SV, prepared from the same batch of purified influenza virus, in cynomolgus macaques and confirmed that WPV is superior to SV in priming potency.

Estimation of the Actual Incidence of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) in Emergent Hotspots: The Example of Hokkaido, Japan during February-March 2020.

Following the first report of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Sapporo city, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan, on 14 February 2020, a surge of cases was observed in Hokkaido during February and March. As of 6 March, 90 cases were diagnosed in Hokkaido. Unfortunately, many infected persons may not have been recognized due to having mild or no symptoms during the initial months of the outbreak.

Domestic dog demographics and estimates of canine vaccination coverage in a rural area of Zambia for the elimination of rabies.

Background: An estimated 75% or more of the human rabies cases in Africa occur in rural settings, which underscores the importance of rabies control in these areas. Understanding dog demographics can help design strategies for rabies control and plan and conduct canine mass vaccination campaigns effectively in African countries.

Methodology/principal Findings: A cross-sectional survey was conducted to investigate domestic dog demographics in Kalambabakali, in the rural Mazabuka District of Zambia.