Stochastic dynamics of Francisella tularensis infection and replication.

ABSTRACT: We study the pathogenesis of Francisella tularensis infection with an experimental mouse model, agent-based computation and mathematical analysis. Following inhalational exposure to Francisella tularensis SCHU S4, a small initial number of bacteria enter lung host cells and proliferate inside them, eventually destroying the host cell and releasing numerous copies that infect other cells. Our analysis of disease progression is based on a stochastic model of a population of infectious agents inside one host cell, extending the birth-and-death process by the occurrence of catastrophes: cell rupture events that affect all bacteria in a cell simultaneously. Closed expressions are obtained for the survival function of an infected cell, the number of bacteria released as a function of time after

SUBMITTER: Carruthers J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7304631 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature