A virus affecting wood frog tadpoles throughout the eastern United States is offering scientists a rare opportunity to investigate the role of environmental factors in the spread of infectious disease.
The study of interactions among agent, host, and environment is best done with a collaborative approach incorporating a range of expertise. Jesse Brunner, a disease ecologist, and Erica Crespi, a physiologist, both in the School of Biological Sciences at Washington State University, have studied Ranavirus and its effects on individual tadpoles. Brunner specializes in the relationship between Ranavirus and its host, while Crespi is an expert on tadpole health.