A University of Georgia researcher has received a nearly $3 million federal grant to track how tuberculosis spreads in Africa's urban areas.

Christopher Whalen will use the five-year National Institutes of Health grant to study along with researchers in Uganda at Makerere University. Experts say there are 9 million new episodes of TB each year.

His research will focus on identifying what types of human interaction are causing the spread of the disease and where in each community it is most likely being transmitted.

The study will track a group of not-ill patients over a year to determine the types of interaction they are having.

Tags: University of Georgia, UGA, research, tuberculosis, TB, Africa