Publications – Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics

Loci for prediction of penicillin and tetracycline susceptibility in Neisseria gonorrhoeae: a genome-wide association study.

Author(s): Mortimer TD, Zhang JJ, Ma KC, Grad YHJournal: Lancet MicrobePMID: 35544098 May 2022

Neisseria gonorrhoeae poses an urgent public health threat because of increasing antimicrobial resistance; however, much of the circulating population remains…

Trends in SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in Massachusetts estimated from newborn screening specimens.

Author(s): Ma KC, Hale JE, Grad YH, Alter G, Luzuriaga K, Eaton RB, Fischinger S, Kaur D, Brody R, Siddiqui SM, Leach D, Brown CM, Klevens RM, Madoff L, Comeau AMJournal: Clin Infect DisPMID: 35213690 February 2022

Estimating the cumulative incidence of SARS-CoV-2 is essential for setting public health policies. We leveraged de-identified Massachusetts newborn screening specimens…

Variation in supplemental carbon dioxide requirements defines lineage-specific antibiotic resistance acquisition in Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Author(s): Rubin DH, Ma KC, Westervelt KA, Hullahalli K, Waldor MK, Grad YHJournal: bioRxiv February 2022

The evolution of the obligate human pathogen Neisseria gonorrhoeae has been shaped by selective pressures from diverse host niche environments…

Genome wide association studies define minimal set of loci for prediction of penicillin and tetracycline susceptibility in Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Author(s): Mortimer TD, Zhang JJ, Ma KC, Grad YHJournal: bioRxiv August 2021

While Neisseria gonorrhoeae poses an urgent public health threat because of increasing antimicrobial resistance, much of the circulating population remains…

Modeling the impact of racial and ethnic disparities on COVID-19 epidemic dynamics.

Author(s): Ma KC, Menkir TF, Kissler SM, Grad YH, Lipsitch MJournal: ElifePMID: 34003112 May 2021

The impact of variable infection risk by race and ethnicity on the dynamics of SARS CoV-2 spread is largely unknown.

A community-driven resource for genomic epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance prediction of Neisseria gonorrhoeae at Pathogenwatch.

Author(s): Sánchez-Busó L, Yeats CA, Taylor B, Goater RJ, Underwood A, Abudahab K, Argimón S, Ma KC, Mortimer TD, Golparian D, Cole MJ, Grad YH, Martin I, Raphael BH, Shafer WM, Town K, Wi T, Harris SR, Unemo M, Aanensen DMJournal: Genome MedPMID: 33875000 April 2021

Emergence and evolution of antimicrobial resistance genes and mutations in Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

Author(s): Yahara K, Ma KC, Mortimer TD, Shimuta K, Nakayama SI, Hirabayashi A, Suzuki M, Jinnai M, Ohya H, Kuroki T, Watanabe Y, Yasuda M, Deguchi T, Eldholm V, Harrison OB, Maiden MCJ, Grad YH, Ohnishi MJournal: Genome MedPMID: 33785063 March 2021

Antimicrobial resistance in Neisseria gonorrhoeae is a global health concern. Strains from two internationally circulating sequence types, ST-7363 and ST-1901,…

Loss of function of nitric oxide reductase associated with neisseria gonorrhoeae infection in women

Author(s): Mortimer T.D., Grad YH, Ma KC, Mortimer TDJournal: Am J Obstet Gynecol December 2020

Neisseria gonorrhoeae, the causative agent of the sexually transmitted infection gonorrhea, must adapt to the variable selective pressures in the…

Big data and simple models used to track the spread of COVID-19 in cities.

Author(s): Ma KC, Lipsitch MJournal: NaturePMID: 33173216 November 2020

Behind the highly politicized disagreements over COVID-19 control measures lies a widely shared desire to return economic and social life…

Increased power from conditional bacterial genome-wide association identifies macrolide resistance mutations in Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

Author(s): Ma KC, Mortimer TD, Duckett MA, Hicks AL, Wheeler NE, Sánchez-Busó L, Grad YHJournal: Nat CommunPMID: 33097713 October 2020

The emergence of resistance to azithromycin complicates treatment of Neisseria gonorrhoeae, the etiologic agent of gonorrhea. Substantial azithromycin resistance remains…