The spatial-temporal distribution and transmission of respiratory viruses in the built environment has been little documented, yet clearly they exist among us. For this project an intensive, active surveillance program for influenza and other respiratory pathogens is being implemented in the urban Manhattan environment with the aim of significantly advancing understanding of transmission dynamics, documenting the genetic basis of immune response to respiratory virus infection, bettering now-casting capabilities, and improving respiratory disease model simulation and forecast.
Funding for this work is provided by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the National Science Foundation. Additional funding was provided by a pilot grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Center for Environmental Health in Northern Manhattan.