The Disease Ecology and Computer Modeling Laboratory (DECML) conducts international work to collect data and provide education and capacity building services.  Currently, our efforts are focused in the Far North Region of Cameroon in Central Africa where we work with a variety of partners including government (Ministry of Livestock Fisheries and Animal Industries, and National Veterinary Laboratory), academic (Higher Institute of the Sahel and University of Ngaoundere Veterinary School) and non-profit (Center d'Appui a la Recherche et au Pastoralisme) partners.  The Far North Region has a unique mix of cultures and animal management systems that provide an ideal laboratory for testing hypotheses about endemic disease ecology.  Our current projects focus on animal movement and several diverse diseases:

• Foot-and-mouth disease (a viral disease of livestock)
• Trypanosomiasis (a vectorborn partasite infecting a variety of animals and humans)
• Brucellosis (a bacterial zoonotic disease transmitted by contact and milk)
• Parasitic diseases of the digestive system (including schistosomiasis and cystocercosis)

For these projects, members of our group visited our research site in January-March (the dry season) and June-August (the rainy season).  During these visits, we:

• Work with local research assistants to improve data collection and begin new projects
• Interview herders about their animals, habits, and views on disease
• Collect and test biological samples
• Conduct workshops for herders to provide feedback about the project and learn about our results
• Meet with university students and professors to help advise locally managed satellite projects

As part of our mission of cross-disciplinary training, we provide the opportunity for Ohio State students from a variety of disciplines to conduct independent research in Cameroon alongside our team.  Thus far we have provided opportunities to one undergraduate student in the Department of Anthropology and two Veterinary Summer Fellowship students.  We are always happy to talk with interested students from any discipline.