Amanda Darling

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Projects

Distinguishing Biofilm-Derived vs. Active Infection Omics Based Signals in Hospital Wastewater

Since COVID-19, wastewater has provided a window into population-level infectious disease dynamics. However, as we expand wastewater-based surveillance (WBS) to bacterial pathogens and antimicrobial resistance, we ask: how do we distinguish between signals derived from active infection versus native sewer microbiota? My research harnesses hybridization-based probe capture enrichment metagenomic sequencing and bioinformatic tools to investigate this distinction and initiates a paradigm shift for WBS to be informed by in-sewer dynamics.

Drinking Water Quality Disparities in Rural Appalachia

I led a systematic review and meta-analysis advancing knowledge on estimated drinking water contaminant levels, exposures, and associated public health outcomes and corresponding research gaps in rural Appalachian U.S. Overall, we found data on drinking water source quality under baseline conditions (i.e., rather than post anomalous contamination events such as chemical spills) in rural Appalachian U.S. was sparse relative to widespread media coverage on the issue.

Advancing Wastewater Surveillance to Inform Rural Health Disparities

To evaluate whether wastewater could serve as a reliable metric for estimating community circulation of viruses and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) markers, even when sourced from aging and low-resource sewer collection networks, I led a 12-month wastewater monitoring study was conducted in a small, rural sewer conveyance system with pronounced infrastructural challenges. Our data indicated that WWTP influent sampling alone can still be used to assess and track community circulation of pathogens in heavily I & I impacted systems, particularly for ubiquitously circulating viruses less prone to dilution induced decay.

Publications

1. Price Loc Nguyen, S., Manthapuri, V., Sigler, K., Choi, P., Markham, C., Darling, A., Odur, I., Pruden, A., Krometis, L.-A. (2026). Representation of Urban and Rural Contexts in the Application of Wastewater Surveillance for Antimicrobial Resistance: A Systematic Review. Water Research, 294, 125450. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2026.125450
2. Price, S., Krometis, L.-A., Magee, J., Darling, A., Pruden, A. (2025). Extending Wastewater-Based Surveillance to Serve Rural Communities: Comparison of Antimicrobial Resistance Indicator Genes in Septage and Wastewater Influent. Science of the Total Environment, 1000, 180456. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.180456
3. Darling, A., Davis, B., Byrne, T., Deck, M., Maldonado Rivera, G., Price, S., Amaral-Torres, A., Markham, C., Gonzalez, R., Vikesland, P., Krometis, L.-A., Pruden, A., Cohen, A. (2025). Comparative Assessment of Wastewater-Based Surveillance Normalization Methods to Improve Pathogen Monitoring in Rural Sewersheds. Environmental Science & Technology, 59(22), 11095–11107. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.4c14485
4. Darling, A., Davis, B., Byrne, T., Deck, M., Maldonado Rivera, G., Price, S., Amaral-Torres, A., Markham, C., Gonzalez, R., Vikesland, P., Krometis, L.-A., Pruden, A., Cohen, A. (2025). Subsewershed Analyses of the Impacts of Inflow and Infiltration on Viral Pathogens and Antibiotic Resistance Markers Across a Rural Sewer System. Water Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2025.123230
5. Philo, S. E., De León, K. B., Noble, R. T., Zhou, N. A., Alghafri, R., Bar-Or, I., Darling, A., D'Souza, N., Hachimi, O., Kaya, D., Kim, S., Kuhn, K. G., Layton, B. A., Mansfeldt, C., Oceguera, B., Radniecki, T. S., Ram, J. L., Saunders, L. P., Shrestha, A., Stadler, L. B., Steele, J. A., Stevenson, B. S., Bibby, K., Boehm, A. B., Halden, R. U., Delgado Vela, J. (2023). Wastewater surveillance for bacterial targets: current challenges and future goals. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. https://doi.org/10.1128/aem.01428-23
6. Cohen, A., Vikesland, P., Pruden, A., Krometis, L.-A., Lee, L. M., Darling, A., Yancey, M., Helmick, M., Singh, R., Gonzalez, R., Meit, M., Degen, M., Taniuchi, M. (2023). Making Waves: The Benefits, and Challenges, of Responsibly Implementing Wastewater-based Surveillance for Rural Communities. Water Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2023.121095
7. Bowes, D. A., Darling, A., Driver, E. M., Kaya, D., Maal-Bared, R., Lee, L. M., Goodman, K., Adhikari, S., Aggarwal, S., Bivins, A., Bohrerova, Z., Cohen, A., Duvallet, C., Elnimeiry, R. A., Hutchison, J. M., Kapoor, V., Keenum, I., Ling, F., Sills, D., Tiwari, A., Vikesland, P., Ziels, R., Mansfeldt, C. (2023). Structured Ethical Review for Wastewater-Based Testing in Support of Public Health. Environmental Science & Technology. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.3c04529
8. Darling, A., Patton, H., Rasheduzzaman, M., Guevara, R., McCray, J., Krometis, L.-A., Cohen, A. (2023). Microbiological and chemical drinking water contaminants and associated health outcomes in rural Appalachia: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Science of the Total Environment.
9. Cohen, A., Maile-Moskowitz, A., Grubb, C., Gonzalez, R., Ceci, A., Darling, A., Hungerford, L., Fricker, R., Finkielstein, C. V., Pruden, A., Vikesland, P. (2022). Sub-Sewershed SARS-CoV-2 Wastewater Surveillance & COVID-19 Epidemiology Using Building-specific Occupancy & Case Data. ACS ES&T Water. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsestwater.2c00059
10. Cohen, A., Rasheduzzaman, M., Darling, A., Krometis, L.-A., Edwards, M., Brown, T., Ahmed, T., Wettstone, E., Pholwat, S., Taniuchi, M., Rogawski-McQuade, E. T. (2022). Bottled and Well Water Quality in a Small Central Appalachian Community. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19148610

Curriculum Vitae

For a complete overview of my research experience, publications, and professional activities, download my CV below.

Data Visualization

Selected data visualizations and other designs I have produced for scientific manuscripts or in my spare time. Most visualizations are generated with a code-first approach and many of them do not involve any manual post-processing steps.

In the News

Robust EPA Grant Funds Collaborative Study to Halt Spread of Diseases Through Wastewater

The Roanoke Star · December 6, 2024

Coverage of a collaborative wastewater surveillance study focused on tracking and preventing disease spread.

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Robust EPA Grant Funds Collaborative Study to Halt the Spread of Diseases Through Wastewater

Virginia Tech News · December 2024

Virginia Tech coverage highlighting wastewater surveillance research related to antimicrobial resistance.

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Appalachian Drinking Water Quality and Health Data Lacking, Study Finds

Phys.org · June 2023

Coverage of research on drinking water contaminants and related health disparities in rural Appalachia.

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PFAS in Drinking Water Infographic

Virginia Tech Extension

Public-facing outreach resource communicating drinking water quality concepts for broader audiences.

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Contact

Email: amandadarling@hsph.harvard.edu

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/amanda-darling-eit-8181a0128