Measles is back with a vengeance. In the UK, where only 85% of school-age children have received two doses of the MMR vaccine, as many as 300 people have contracted the disease since October. And cases are increasing across the United States as well.
But early detection of measles outbreaks is tricky. Like many other respiratory viruses, it starts with a cough, runny nose, fever, and body aches. The tell-tale rash will no longer appear for 2 to 4 days. By then, the person is already contagious. It's actually very contagious. Measles is one of the most contagious diseases around.
Maybe there is a solution. The United States has developed a vast wastewater sampling network to detect COVID-19 during the pandemic. Can that network be leveraged to provide an early warning system for measles? Read the full story.
—Cassandra Willyard
This story is excerpted from The Checkup, a weekly biotech and health newsletter. Sign up You'll receive it in your inbox every Thursday.
Meet the economist who wants to explain nature in the field
What is the true value of bees? Valley? Mangrove trees?
Gretchen Daily, co-founder and faculty member of the Stanford Natural Capital Project, has dedicated her career to answering these complex questions. Daily and her team help governments, international banks and NGOs quantify the value of nature as well as determine the benefits of conservation and ecosystem restoration.