NELSON RESEARCH GROUP
Infectious disease epidemiology, tuberculosis, and vaccines
Rollins School of Public Health | Emory University | Atlanta, GA, USA

TUBERCULOSIS
transmission networks and dynamics
Nelson KN, Talarico S, Poonja S, McDaniel CJ, Cilnis M, Chang AH, Raz K, Noboa WS, Cowan L, Shaw T, Posey J, Silk BJ. Mutation of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and implications for using whole-genome sequencing for investigating recent tuberculosis transmission. Front. Public Health, 2022; 9(790544).
Nelson KN, Jenness SM, Mathema B, Lopman BA, Auld SC, Shah NS, Brust JCM, Ismail N, Omar SV, Brown TS, Allana S, Campbell A, Moodley P, Mlisana K, Gandhi NR. Social mixing and clinical features linked with transmission in a network of extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis cases in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2020, 70(11): 2396-2402.
Accompanying editorial: Zelner J. Is a more data-driven approach the future of tuberculosis transmission modeling?. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2020; 70(11): 2403-2404.
Nelson KN, Gandhi NR, Mathema B, Lopman BA, Brust JCM, Auld SC, Ismail N, Omar SV, Brown TS, Allana S, Campbell A, Moodley P, Mlisana K, Shah NS, Jenness SM. Modeling missing cases and transmission links in networks of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. American Journal of Epidemiology. 2020; 189(7): 735-745.
Nelson KN, Shah NS, Mathema B, Ismail N, Brust JCM, Brown TS, Auld SC, Omar SV, Morris N, Campbell A, Allana S, Moodley P, Mlisana K, Gandhi NR. Spatial patterns of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-tuberculosis) transmission in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Journal of Infectious Diseases. 2018; 218(12): jiy394.
Brown TS, Challagundla L, Baugh EH, Omar SV, Mustaev A, Auld SC, Shah NS, Kreiswirth BN, Brust JCM, Nelson KN, Narechania A, Kurepina N, Mlisana K, Bonneau R, Eldholm V, Ismail N, Kolokotronis SO, Robinson DA, Gandhi NR, Mathema B. Pre-detection history of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2019; 116(46): 23284-23291.

SOCIAL CONTACT PATTERNS
informing disease models with data on social behavior
Nelson KN, Lopman BA. The Hiatus of the Handshake. Science, 2022; 377(6601):33-34.
Nelson KN, Siegler AJ, Sullivan PS, Bradley H, Hall E, Luisi N. Hipp-Ramsey P, Sanchez T, Shioda K, Lopman BA. Nationally Representative Social Contact Patterns in the United States, August 2020-April 2021. Epidemics, 2022; 40(10065).
Liu CY, Berlin J, Kiti MC, Del Fava E, Grow A, Zagheni E, Melegaro A, Jenness SM, Omer S, Lopman BA, Nelson KN. Rapid review of social contact patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic. Epidemiology, 2021; 32(6):781-91.
Kiti MC, Aguolu OG, Liu C, Restrepo AM, Regina R, Willebrand K, Couzens C, Bartelsmeyer T, Nelson KN, Jenness SM, Riley S, Melegaro A, Ahmed F, Malik F, Lopman B, Omer, SB. Social contact patterns among employees in 3 U.S. companies during early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic, April to June 2020. Epidemics, 2021; 36(100481).

SARS-COV-2
transmission dynamics and disease burden
Nelson KN*, Baker JM*, Overton E, Lopman BA, Lash TL, Pohtakis M, Jacob JT, Roback J, Fridkin S, Steinberg J. Quantification of occupational and community risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence among healthcare workers in a large U.S. healthcare system. Annals of Internal Medicine. 2021; 174(5):649-654.
Shioda K, Lau M, Kraay ANM, Nelson KN, Siegler AJ, Sullivan PS; Collins MH, Weitz JS, Lopman BA. Estimating the cumulative incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the infection fatality ratio in light of waning antibodies. Epidemiology. 2021; 32(4): 518-24.
Sullivan PS, Siegler AJ, Shioda K, Hall EW, Bradley H, Sanchez T, Luisi N, Valentine-Graves M, Nelson KN, Fahimi M, Kamali A, Sailey C, Lopman BA. SARS-CoV-2 cumulative incidence, United States, August-December 2020. Clinical Infectious Disease, 2021; 74(7):1141-1150.
Lau M, Grenfell B, Nelson KN, Lopman BA. Characterizing super-spreading events and age-specific infectivity of COVID-19 transmission in Georgia, USA. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2020; 117 (36) 22430-22435.
Coverage in The New York Times
Kraay ANM*, Nelson KN*, Zhao C, Weitz JSW, BA Lopman. Modeling serological testing to inform relaxation of social distancing for COVID-19 control. medRxiv preprint: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.04.24.20078576
*co-first author

VACCINES
immunization programs and population-level vaccine impact
Gallagher ME, Sieben AJ, Nelson KN, Kraay ANM, Lopman B, Handel A, Koelle K. Indirect benefits are a crucial consideration when evaluating SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidates. Nature Medicine. 2021; 27:4-5.
Nelson KN, Wallace AS, Sodha SV, Daniels D, Dietz V. Assessing strategies for increasing urban immunization coverage: A systematic review of peer-reviewed literature. Vaccine. 2016. 34(46): 5495-5503.
Bratton KN, Wardle MT, Orenstein WA, Omer SB. Maternal Influenza Immunization and Birth Outcomes of Stillbirth and Spontaneous Abortion: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Clinical Infectious Disease. 2015. 60 (5): e11-e19.
Gallagher ME, Sieben AJ, Nelson KN, Kraay ANM, Lopman B, Handel A, Koelle K. Indirect benefits are a crucial consideration when evaluating SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidates. Nature Medicine. 2021; 27:4–5.

ADDITIONAL WORK
Legionnaires' disease
Nelson KN*, Binney ZO*, Chamberlain AT. Excess Pneumonia Mortality During a Legionnaires’ Disease Outbreak in Flint, Michigan. Epidemiology. 2020; 31(6):823-831.
*co-first author
Frontline PBS Documentary on Legionnaires’ Disease in Flint, Michigan, 2019. (Analysis featured.)