Host-pathogen time series data in wildlife support a transmission function between density and frequency dependence.

ABSTRACT: A key aim in epidemiology is to understand how pathogens spread within their host populations. Central to this is an elucidation of a pathogen's transmission dynamics. Mathematical models have generally assumed that either contact rate between hosts is linearly related to host density (density-dependent) or that contact rate is independent of density (frequency-dependent), but attempts to confirm either these or alternative transmission functions have been rare. Here, we fit infection equations to 6 years of data on cowpox virus infection (a zoonotic pathogen) for 4 natural populations to investigate which of these transmission functions is best supported by the data. We utilize a simple reformulation of the traditional transmission equations that greatly aids the estimation of the relatio

SUBMITTER: Smith MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2672915 | biostudies-literature | 2009 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature