Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Infection

Infection

When a pathogen enters the body and reproduces, it can cause an infection, damage body cells, and cause illness symptoms that eventually lead to disease. Therefore, its prevention requires breaking the chain of infection.
The chain begins with pathogens: bacteria, viruses, fungi, prions, or parasites such as protozoa helminths. These can be present on the skin as transient or resident flora, or they can be acquired from the environment. Identifying and treating the type of infection and...

Infectious Diseases and Their Occurrence

Infectious Diseases and Their Occurrence

Infectious diseases appear in populations through various transmission patterns, influenced by pathogen characteristics, population immunity, environmental conditions, and social behavior. Understanding these patterns is essential for effective public health surveillance and intervention. These categories—sporadic, outbreak, epidemic, pandemic, and endemic—help frame the nature and scope of disease events.Sporadic diseases occur irregularly and infrequently, without a predictable temporal or...

Social Traps

Social traps are negative situations where people get caught in a direction or relationship that later proves to be unpleasant, with no easy way to back out of or avoid. The concept was orignally introduced by John Platt who applied psychology to Garrett Hardin's "Tragedy of the Commons", where in New England herd owners could let their cattle graze in the common ground. This situation seems like a good idea, but an individual could have an advantage. If they owned more cows, the larger...

Causality in Epidemiology

Causality in Epidemiology

Causality or causation is a fundamental concept in epidemiology, vital for understanding the relationships between various factors and health outcomes. Despite its importance, there's no single, universally accepted definition of causality within the discipline. Drawing from a systematic review, causality in epidemiology encompasses several definitions, including production, necessary and sufficient, sufficient-component, counterfactual, and probabilistic models. Each has its strengths and...

Transmission of Pathogens

Transmission of Pathogens

Pathogens spread from their reservoirs to susceptible hosts through three main routes: contact transmission, vehicle transmission, and vector transmission. Each route involves distinct mechanisms of transfer.Contact TransmissionThis category includes direct contact, indirect contact, and droplet transmission:Direct contact involves immediate physical interaction between individuals—such as a handshake—which can spread pathogens like Streptococcus pyogenes, the bacterium responsible for...

Reservoir of Infection

Reservoir of Infection

Infectious diseases arise from intricate interactions between pathogens and their reservoirs. A reservoir of infection refers to the natural habitat where a pathogen lives, grows, and multiplies, serving as a continual source of infection. Reservoirs are broadly classified as either living or nonliving, and each plays a unique role in disease transmission, significantly influencing public health interventions and control strategies.Humans act as reservoirs for a wide array of pathogens,...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Recovery through creativity: a study into lived experiences of participants in Dutch arts-based recovery initiatives.

Frontiers in public health·2026

Same author

[Trauma in the novels of Han Kang].

Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde·2025

Same author

Self-perceived relations between artistic creativity and mental illness: a study into lived experiences.

Frontiers in public health·2024

Same author

[Autism as an example for an android].

Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde·2013

Same author

[Lyre and lancet: doctors as writers].

Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde·2012

Same author

[What can art contribute to medicine?].

Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde·2011

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 2, 2026

A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats

A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats

Published on: February 22, 2018

[Contagion in literature].

Arko Oderwald¹

¹Vrije Universiteit Medisch Centrum, afd. Metamedica, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. ak.oderwald@vumc.nl

Nederlands Tijdschrift Voor Geneeskunde

|April 14, 2011

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Contagious diseases offer rich narrative potential, extending beyond medicine into social, political, and moral themes in literature. Novels explore contagion, including the metaphorical spread of ideas, enriching literary and scientific discourse.

More Related Videos

Application of I TASSER, trRosetta, UCSF Chimera, HADDOCK server, and HEX loria for De Novo and In Silico Design of Proteins

Application of I TASSER, trRosetta, UCSF Chimera, HADDOCK server, and HEX loria for De Novo and In Silico Design of Proteins

Published on: July 8, 2025

Sexual Transmission of American Trypanosomes from Males and Females to Naive Mates

Sexual Transmission of American Trypanosomes from Males and Females to Naive Mates

Published on: January 27, 2019

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 2, 2026

A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats

A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats

Published on: February 22, 2018

Application of I TASSER, trRosetta, UCSF Chimera, HADDOCK server, and HEX loria for De Novo and In Silico Design of Proteins

Application of I TASSER, trRosetta, UCSF Chimera, HADDOCK server, and HEX loria for De Novo and In Silico Design of Proteins

Published on: July 8, 2025

Sexual Transmission of American Trypanosomes from Males and Females to Naive Mates

Sexual Transmission of American Trypanosomes from Males and Females to Naive Mates

Published on: January 27, 2019

Area of Science:

Literary studies
Sociology of science
Medical humanities

Context:

Contagious diseases are inherently social phenomena.
Literary narratives provide a platform for exploring multifaceted dimensions of epidemics.
Scientific concepts of contagion are frequently integrated into fictional works.

Purpose:

To analyze the literary representation of contagious diseases.
To explore the social, political, moral, and religious dimensions of epidemics in novels.
To examine the metaphorical use of contagion in literature, including the spread of ideas.

Summary:

Contagious diseases are highly suitable subjects for novelistic exploration.
Their definition as social phenomena imbues them with medical, social, political, moral, and religious aspects.
Novels adopt, elaborate, and metaphorically employ new scientific concepts of contagion, such as the contagion of ideas.

Impact:

Highlights the interdisciplinary connections between disease, literature, and society.
Demonstrates how literature can reflect and shape understanding of social phenomena like contagion.
Provides insights into the metaphorical extension of scientific concepts into broader cultural contexts.