Soil testing to track intestinal worm infections
Soil epidemiology: a new tool for environmental surveillance of soil-transmitted helminth infections in endemic settings.
Collecting soil from busy community spots to see whether it reveals intestinal worm transmission in communities receiving mass deworming.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California Berkeley NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Berkeley, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11136532 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
From your perspective, researchers will take soil samples from places where people gather, like home entrances, water points, and schools, and test them for worm eggs using lab techniques. They will compare those soil results to human stool testing done with sensitive qPCR methods as part of a large deworming project in communities in Benin and India. The work links environmental sampling with human infection data to find whether soil testing could be a less invasive, lower-cost way to spot ongoing transmission. The project uses samples collected across many communities over time to check how well soil sampling matches human infections after mass drug administration.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People living in soil-transmitted-helminth (intestinal worm) endemic communities—especially those taking part in community deworming programs in the trial areas—who can provide stool samples or allow soil sampling near their homes or local sites.
Not a fit: People who do not live in endemic areas, are not part of the participating communities, or are unwilling to provide stool samples or allow soil collection likely would not benefit directly from this work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If this works, programs could monitor worm transmission with less invasive and cheaper methods, helping target treatment and reduce reinfection.
How similar studies have performed: Human stool testing and community-wide deworming have shown promise in trials and models, but using soil sampling for surveillance is relatively new with only early promising results.
Where this research is happening
Berkeley, United States
- University of California Berkeley — Berkeley, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Pickering, Amy J. — University of California Berkeley
- Study coordinator: Pickering, Amy J.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.