Eric Ng'eno

My research focuses on the ecology and evolution of antimicrobial-resistant Escherichia coli carriage in community settings. Broadly, my questions include: how are individuals carrying E. coli resistant to antibiotics distributed in populations, which biotic, abiotic, dispersal and neutral processes underlie observed distribution patterns, and what are the relative importance of these processes in different settings. I am also interested in exploring potential feedback between microbiome community changes (as may be depicted in resistant E. coli strains composition) and enteric diseases dynamics in community settings. I use methods and tools in disease ecology, distribution ecology, community ecology, and spatial epidemiology. Recently wading into distribution ecology of vector-borne and other infectious diseases to inform epidemic and pandemic preparedness strategies. Essentially I ask, where else can a vector, and by extension the pathogens it carries, occur given its current known distribution. Also I am curious whether pathogens exhibit environmental requirements (niche) distinct from that of their vectors.