Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40346131›Full record

ArticleCommunications medicine2025

Characterizing spatial epidemiology in a heterogeneous transmission landscape using the spatial transmission count statistic.

Leke Lyu, Gabriella Veytsel, Guppy Stott, Spencer Fox, Cody Dailey, Lambodhar Damodaran, Kayo Fujimoto, Pamela Brown, Roger Sealy, Armand Brown and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Communications medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Tracing SARS-CoV-2 clusters across local scales using genomic data.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Leke LyuInstitute of Bioinformatics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
Gabriella VeytselInstitute of Bioinformatics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
Guppy StottInstitute of Bioinformatics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
Spencer FoxInstitute of Bioinformatics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1969-3778
Cody DaileyInstitute of Bioinformatics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
Lambodhar DamodaranDepartment of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Kayo FujimotoDepartment of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA.
Pamela BrownDivision of Disease Prevention and Control, Houston Health Department, Houston, TX, USA.
Roger SealyDivision of Disease Prevention and Control, Houston Health Department, Houston, TX, USA.
Armand BrownDivision of Disease Prevention and Control, Houston Health Department, Houston, TX, USA.
Magdy AlabadyGeorgia Genomics and Bioinformatics Center, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1601-682X
Justin BahlInstitute of Bioinformatics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA. justin.bahl@uga.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7572-4300

Funding

NIAID Centers of Excellence for Influenza Research and Response: Universal Influenza Vaccine Research Activities75N93021C00018 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA · PI TOMPKINS, S. MARK · 2021 to 2025
$21.6M
NIAID NIH HHS 75N93021C00018U.S. Department of Health & Human Services | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) NU50CK000626
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundViral genomes contain records of geographic movements and cross-scale transmission dynamics. However, the impact of regional heterogeneity, particularly among rural and urban centers, on viral spread and epidemic trajectory has been less explored due to limited data availability. Intensive and widespread efforts to collect and sequence SARS-CoV-2 viral samples have enabled the development of comparative genomic approaches to reconstruct spatial transmission history and understand viral transmission across different scales.

methodsWe proposed the spatial transmission count statistic that efficiently summarizes the geographic transmission patterns imprinted in viral phylogenies. Guided by a time-scaled tree with ancestral trait states, we identified spatial transmission linkages and categorized them as imports, local transmissions, and exports. These linkages were then summarized to represent the epidemic profile of the focal area.

resultsHere, we demonstrate the utility of this approach for near real-time outbreak analysis using over 12,000 full genomes and linked epidemiological data to investigate the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in Texas. Our findings indicate that (1) highly populated urban centers were the main sources of the epidemic in Texas; (2) outbreaks in urban centers were connected to the global epidemic; and (3) outbreaks in urban centers were locally maintained, while epidemics in rural areas were driven by repeated introductions.

conclusionsIn this study, we introduce the Source Sink Score, which determines whether a localized outbreak serves as a source or sink for other regions, and the Local Import Score, which assesses whether the outbreak has transitioned to local transmission rather than being maintained by continued introductions. These epidemiological statistics provide actionable insights for developing public health interventions tailored to the needs of affected areas.

Identifiers

PMID40346131
PMCPMC12064650

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.