ANIMAL TRACKERS

School kids and farm animals are helping researchers test GPS tracking methods as part of a larger global health project.

BY DEBRA VENZKE WITH PHOTOS BY KATY STITES

W.C. Fields famously said “Never work with children or animals,” but College of Public Health researchers are bucking that advice by enlisting kids and farm animals to help develop one piece of a larger global public health project.

The project, called PATHOME, is studying infectious disease transmission, specifically the pathogens that cause diarrhea and malnutrition, in urban Kenya. Co-principal investigators Kelly Baker, assistant professor of occupational and environmental health, and Dan Sewell, assistant professor of biostatistics, received a $2.5 million grant from the Fogarty International Center, part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, to conduct the study over five years.

“Animals can be carriers of the same pathogens that cause disease in humans,” says Baker. “One of our research questions is to try to understand the role of animals in infection of children in these cities and neighborhoods in Kenya.”

A UNIQUE NICHE

The project involves geotracking freeroaming domestic animals and collecting spatial data to see where there could be points of animal-to-human transmission. It involves harnessing a small GPS tracker onto animals such as chickens, goats, sheep, cats, and dogs that are commonly found in low-income urban neighborhoods of Kenya.

While geotracking is fairly common in the veterinary and wildlife research fields, it’s not often used in urban infectious disease research. “We’re tracking a unique niche of animals,” says Baker. “We’re trying to understand animal movement in crowded, population-dense urban areas.”

The task isn’t something the research team has ever done before, Baker adds. “We haven’t found any studies that geotracked animals in urban environments, so we’re developing protocols ahead of time for implementation of this piece of the study.”

A CREATIVE PARTNERSHIP

The COVID-19 pandemic added another twist. “Back when we wrote this grant (before the pandemic), we anticipated being able to go to Kenya to test out some of these protocols ourselves, but we’ve had to pivot and be innovative in how we solve some of our method development and piloting needs,” Baker explains.

That’s where the kids come in. Baker contacted a friend, Brydie Criswell, who directs a private school called The Good Earth Nature School in eastern Iowa, to pilot test the animal geotracking protocols and equipment. Through this experience, the young students are introduced to the concept of the scientific method.

“The school is based on a farm, so they have chickens, goats, dogs, and cats,” Baker says. “The interaction with animals is part of what the kids learn. In talking with Brydie, we decided this would be a fun opportunity to do a K-12 STEM partnership exercise.”

Members of the research team have met with the students via Zoom, and the students have helped brainstorm potential problems (Will the goats eat the harnesses and trackers?) and develop research questions.

“We talked about how scientists form a hypothesis that is testable, then come up with an idea to test that hypothesis,” Baker says.

The students, who range in age from 5 to 12, are helping to answer questions such as which harnesses are the easiest to fit to animals, which stay on best, what types of geotracking units work best, and if the GPS signal might be lost when an animal goes into a barn or coop. The project is following animal research protocols to ensure that the animals aren’t distressed or harmed.

HELPING PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD

Bisola Osinuga, a PhD candidate in occupational and environmental health, serves as the project manager for the PATHOME study. Her responsibilities include identifying animal geotracking technologies suitable for the project and helping to develop and refine the protocols for both the geospatial monitoring and behavioral assessment tools. She’s visited with The Good Earth students via Zoom.

“I participated in some of their class sections, explaining why we are doing this project and sharing my experiences about growing up in Nigeria,” Osinuga says. “They had some fun questions for me, trying to understand what that looks like. I think sharing my experiences made them realize the stark contrast between living in Iowa and living in rural sub-Saharan Africa. It also motivated them to be more invested in the project, because they believe they are helping someone and making the world a better place through this project.”

The students echo that sentiment. “I like to think that doing one small thing will help a bunch of people,” says student Elianna Nelson. “I feel good that I have accomplished something that will change someone’s life.”

“I like that we get to help people all around the world,” adds Violet Criswell.

The students also enjoy the project’s science aspects. “I like the challenge of using the tracker,” says Gabe Steburg.

“I liked collecting the data,” says Nasya Cannon.

The experience is providing Osinuga with valuable career experience. “I’m learning how to communicate the important aspects of research projects succinctly and intelligently,” she says. “I’m also learning how to deal with people on different parts of the planet, time management, research development and organization, teasing out likely problems one can experience in the field before actually starting a research project, and the power of collaboration in multidisciplinary research.”

She’s been impressed by the students. “To be honest, working with them reminded me about the open innocence, passion, and enthusiasm of young children,” she says. She adds that she was “surprised to learn how resourceful they are in coming up with solutions when we are having troubleshooting problems. They never give up.”