09/07/2012

Tracking Viruses from Animals to People

Close up of a digitally-colorized transmission electron micrograph (TEM) of the West Nile virus (WNV). Image courtesy of Cynthia Goldsmith and CDC/P.E. Rollin
Close up of a digitally-colorized transmission electron micrograph (TEM) of the West Nile virus (WNV). Image courtesy of Cynthia Goldsmith and CDC/P.E. Rollin

From the West Nile virus outbreak in Texas, to hantavirus in Yosemite, to the newly-discovered tickborne ‘Heartland’ virus in  Missouri, viruses that cross from animals to people are in the news. Maria Diuk-Wasser, who studies the ecology and epidemiology of zoonotic diseases, helps explain the science behind the headlines.

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Maria Diuk-Wasser

Maria Diuk-Wasser is an assistant professor of epidemiology and microbial diseases at Yale School of Public Health in New Haven, Connecticut.

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About Charles Bergquist

As Science Friday’s director and senior producer, Charles Bergquist channels the chaos of a live production studio into something sounding like a radio program. Favorite topics include planetary sciences, chemistry, materials, and shiny things with blinking lights.