# Phylogenetic modeling of viral transmission dynamics at the human-wildlife interface in Uganda

> **NIH NIH R01** · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $667,311

## Abstract

Many infectious diseases that threaten humans originated among wildlife, yet we know relatively little 
about the real-world ecological conditions that enable spillover events. Despite its importance, identifying 
novel viral pathogens and characterizing their transmission dynamics remains difficult because it requires 
advanced genetic sequencing technologies, sampling wildlife likely to harbor pathogens of concern to 
humans, and sophisticated modeling techniques. We will study red colobus monkeys in Kibale National 
Park, Uganda, other nonhuman primates, and people who neighbor these wildlife populations to quantify 
transmission dynamics within and between species. Our team will collect behavioral ecology data on red 
colobus monkeys living in areas of the forest with different degrees of anthropogenic disturbance and 
conduct interviews with people living along the boundary of the park with varying exposure risks for 
zoonotic diseases. We will conduct repeat sampling of people and individually identifiable red colobus 
monkeys to analyze the gut virome, assess infection with gastrointestinal parasites known to infect both 
red colobus and people, discover previously undocumented viral diversity, detect the presence of novel 
pathogens of concern to humans, red colobus monkeys, and other primates (e.g. SARS-CoV-2), and 
track the evolutionary spread of detected pathogens. To model how red colobus-associated viruses 
spread, we will develop new phylodynamic models that allow longitudinal ecological and biogeographical 
data to structure time-heterogenous epidemiological event rates. We will also create, test, and distribute 
new software for simulation, Bayesian inference, and deep learning-based inference to model how 
infectious diseases spread in a wide variety of ecosystem-level transmission scenarios. Our proposed 
project will benefit public health and wildlife conservation and expand STEM training in the USA and 
Uganda. Working with Ugandan communities, we will co-create solutions to address risks for zoonotic 
disease transmission and test mitigation strategies to reduce transmission pathways.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10893034
- **Project number:** 5R01TW012704-02
- **Recipient organization:** WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Krista Milich
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $667,311
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-07-20 → 2028-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10893034

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10893034, Phylogenetic modeling of viral transmission dynamics at the human-wildlife interface in Uganda (5R01TW012704-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10893034. Licensed CC0.

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