Katherine R Sabourin1, Angela Nalwoga2, Denise Whitby3, Robert Newton4, Rosemary Rochford5. 1. Department of Immunology and Microbiology, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA. Electronic address: Katherine.sabourin@cuanschutz.edu. 2. Department of Immunology and Microbiology, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA; MRC/UVRI and LSHTM Uganda Research Unit, Entebbe, Uganda. 3. Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Leidos Biomedical Research, Frederick, MD, USA. 4. MRC/UVRI and LSHTM Uganda Research Unit, Entebbe, Uganda; University of York, York, United Kingdom. 5. Department of Immunology and Microbiology, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The Environmental Determinants of KSHV transmission in rural Uganda (ENDKU) study began enrollment in February 2020 with the purpose of defining the relationship between malaria, primarily caused by Plasmodium falciparum in sub-Saharan Africa, and KSHV susceptibility and reactivation. Uganda is an ideal study site, because both malaria and KSHV are endemic and widespread, even among young children. METHODS: ENDKU is a longitudinal cohort study of infants enrolled at six months of age and followed until three years of age. The main study, and one smaller sub-study, is nested within the General Population Cohort (GPC), a long-standing population cohort in rural Uganda. The ENDKU study was created to test the hypothesis that P. falciparum malaria increases an infant's susceptibility to KSHV infection. A sub-study to evaluate the effects of P. falciparum on KSHV reactivation involves an additional cohort of 5-10-year-old children with and without acute malaria who presented to the GPC study clinic. For each study, participants provided demographic and behavioral data through administered questionnaires and blood and saliva samples. RESULTS: Despite barriers presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the study team was able to leverage the long-standing relationship of the UK Medical Research Council and the Uganda Virus Research Institute (MRC/UVRI) with the community, a strong commitment to research, and a multi-disciplinary team of experts to successfully implement the ENDKU study. CONCLUSION: The results of this multi-pronged approach will answer important questions about the etiology and transmission of KSHV in sub-Saharan Africa and the data and samples collected will be an important future resource for scientific research in the region.
BACKGROUND: The Environmental Determinants of KSHV transmission in rural Uganda (ENDKU) study began enrollment in February 2020 with the purpose of defining the relationship between malaria, primarily caused by Plasmodium falciparum in sub-Saharan Africa, and KSHV susceptibility and reactivation. Uganda is an ideal study site, because both malaria and KSHV are endemic and widespread, even among young children. METHODS: ENDKU is a longitudinal cohort study of infants enrolled at six months of age and followed until three years of age. The main study, and one smaller sub-study, is nested within the General Population Cohort (GPC), a long-standing population cohort in rural Uganda. The ENDKU study was created to test the hypothesis that P. falciparum malaria increases an infant's susceptibility to KSHV infection. A sub-study to evaluate the effects of P. falciparum on KSHV reactivation involves an additional cohort of 5-10-year-old children with and without acute malaria who presented to the GPC study clinic. For each study, participants provided demographic and behavioral data through administered questionnaires and blood and saliva samples. RESULTS: Despite barriers presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the study team was able to leverage the long-standing relationship of the UK Medical Research Council and the Uganda Virus Research Institute (MRC/UVRI) with the community, a strong commitment to research, and a multi-disciplinary team of experts to successfully implement the ENDKU study. CONCLUSION: The results of this multi-pronged approach will answer important questions about the etiology and transmission of KSHV in sub-Saharan Africa and the data and samples collected will be an important future resource for scientific research in the region.
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