World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!

D-Index & Metrics

Environmental Sciences

D-Index
63
Citations
12095
World Ranking
2519
National Ranking
1010

Research.com Recognitions

  • 1966 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Overview

Kara L. Nelson is affiliated with the University of California, Berkeley in the United States. Their research spans multiple fields, with a primary focus on Medicine and Environmental Science.

Their scholarly output includes significant work in specialized subfields such as Infectious Diseases, Water Science and Technology, Biomedical Engineering, Nutrition and Dietetics, and Molecular Biology. The main topics addressed in their research cover SARS-CoV-2 detection and testing, biosensors and analytical detection, child nutrition and water access, fecal contamination and water quality, viral gastroenteritis research and epidemiology, water treatment and disinfection, and advanced biosensing and bioanalysis techniques.

Notable recent papers by Kara L. Nelson include:

  • Genome Sequencing of Sewage Detects Regionally Prevalent SARS-CoV-2 Variants, 2021, published in mBio
  • Challenges in Measuring the Recovery of SARS-CoV-2 from Wastewater, 2021, published in Environmental Science & Technology
  • Wastewater Surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 on College Campuses: Initial Efforts, Lessons Learned, and Research Needs, 2021, published in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
  • A Research Agenda for the Future of Urban Water Management: Exploring the Potential of Nongrid, Small-Grid, and Hybrid Solutions, 2020, published in Environmental Science & Technology
  • Tools for interpretation of wastewater SARS-CoV-2 temporal and spatial trends demonstrated with data collected in the San Francisco Bay Area, 2021, published in Water Research X

Their frequent coauthors include:

  • Rose S. Kantor
  • Lauren C. Kennedy
  • Hannah Greenwald
  • Sasha Harris-Lovett
  • Adrian Hinkle

Kara L. Nelson publishes regularly in venues such as bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory), Environmental Science & Technology, Environmental Science Water Research & Technology, Environmental Science Processes & Impacts, and Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research).

Within their fields of study, they focus prominently on the development and application of biosensors, analytical detection methods, and advanced bioanalysis techniques. Their work also explores public health aspects related to nutrition and water access, alongside environmental monitoring strategies for infectious diseases like COVID-19 through wastewater surveillance.

Kara L. Nelson has received recognition as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), an honor acknowledging contributions to the scientific community.

Best Publications

  • Bactericidal Effect of Zero-Valent Iron Nanoparticles on Escherichia coli

    Changha Lee;Jee Yeon Kim;Won Il Lee;Kara L. Nelson

  • Genome Sequencing of Sewage Detects Regionally Prevalent SARS-CoV-2 Variants.

    Alexander Crits-Christoph;Rose S Kantor;Matthew R Olm;Oscar N Whitney

  • Synthetic Graphene Oxide Leaf for Solar Desalination with Zero Liquid Discharge

    Casey Finnerty;Lei Zhang;David L. Sedlak;Kara L. Nelson

  • Intermittent Water Supply: Prevalence, Practice, and Microbial Water Quality

    Emily Kumpel;Kara L. Nelson

  • Sunlight-Mediated Inactivation of MS2 Coliphage via Exogenous Singlet Oxygen Produced by Sensitizers in Natural Waters

    Tamar Kohn;Kara L Nelson

  • Sunlight-mediated inactivation of health-relevant microorganisms in water: a review of mechanisms and modeling approaches

    Kara L. Nelson;Alexandria B. Boehm;Robert J. Davies-Colley;Michael C. Dodd

  • Hybrid life-cycle environmental and cost inventory of sewage sludge treatment and end-use scenarios: a case study from China.

    Ashley Murray;Arpad Horvath;Kara L. Nelson

  • Electrochemical Stripping to Recover Nitrogen from Source-Separated Urine

    William A. Tarpeh;James M. Barazesh;Tzahi Y. Cath;Kara L. Nelson

  • Comparing microbial water quality in an intermittent and continuous piped water supply.

    Emily Kumpel;Kara L. Nelson

  • A global, spatially-explicit assessment of irrigated croplands influenced by urban wastewater flows

    Anne Louise Thebo;Pay Drechsel;Eric Lambin;Eric Lambin;Kara Nelson

  • Engineered Infiltration Systems for Urban Stormwater Reclamation

    Janel E. Grebel;Janel E. Grebel;Sanjay K. Mohanty;Sanjay K. Mohanty;Andrew A. Torkelson;Andrew A. Torkelson;Alexandria B. Boehm;Alexandria B. Boehm

  • The effects of temperature, pH, and ammonia concentration on the inactivation of Ascaris eggs in sewage sludge.

    Brian M. Pecson;José Antonio Barrios;Blanca Elena Jiménez;Kara L. Nelson

  • Estimating Infection Risks and the Global Burden of Diarrheal Disease Attributable to Intermittent Water Supply Using QMRA

    Aaron W. Bivins;Trent Sumner;Emily Kumpel;Guy Howard

  • Covariation and photoinactivation of traditional and novel indicator organisms and human viruses at a sewage-impacted marine beach.

    Alexandria B. Boehm;Kevan M. Yamahara;David C. Love;Britt M. Peterson

  • Efficacy of biochar to remove Escherichia coli from stormwater under steady and intermittent flow

    Sanjay K. Mohanty;Keri B. Cantrell;Kara L. Nelson;Alexandria B. Boehm

  • Sludge accumulation, characteristics, and pathogen inactivation in four primary waste stabilization ponds in central Mexico.

    Kara L. Nelson;Blanca Jiménez Cisneros;George Tchobanoglous;Jeannie L. Darby

  • Comparing Ion Exchange Adsorbents for Nitrogen Recovery from Source-Separated Urine.

    William A. Tarpeh;Kai M. Udert;Kara L. Nelson;Kara L. Nelson

  • Solar water disinfection (SODIS) of Escherichia coli, Enterococcus spp., and MS2 coliphage: Effects of additives and alternative container materials

    Michael B. Fisher;Mercedes Iriarte;Kara L. Nelson

  • The joint effects of efficacy and compliance: A study of household water treatment effectiveness against childhood diarrhea

    Kyle S. Enger;Kara L. Nelson;Joan B. Rose;Joseph N.S. Eisenberg

  • Following the water: a controlled study of drinking water storage in northern coastal Ecuador

    Karen Levy;Kara L. Nelson;Alan Hubbard;Joseph N.S. Eisenberg

  • Challenges in Measuring the Recovery of SARS-CoV-2 from Wastewater.

    Rose S Kantor;Kara L Nelson;Hannah D Greenwald;Lauren C Kennedy

Frequent Co-Authors

Alexandria B. Boehm
Alexandria B. Boehm Stanford University
Joseph N. S. Eisenberg
Joseph N. S. Eisenberg University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
David L. Sedlak
David L. Sedlak University of California, Berkeley
Pay Drechsel
Pay Drechsel International Water Management Institute
Arpad Horvath
Arpad Horvath University of California, Berkeley
Jeyong Yoon
Jeyong Yoon Seoul National University
Chang-Ha Lee
Chang-Ha Lee Seoul National University
Joan B. Rose
Joan B. Rose Michigan State University
Stephen P. Luby
Stephen P. Luby Stanford University

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