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Integrating Infection Intensity into Within- and Between-Host Pathogen Dynamics: Implications for Invasion and
The American Naturalist
|November 11, 2021
Summary
Accounting for infection intensity in microparasite models is crucial. Heterogeneity in pathogen load typically reduces invasion probability and dampens virulence-transmission trade-offs, impacting disease dynamics.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Epidemiology
- Mathematical Biology
Background:
- Infection intensity is often overlooked in microparasite (e.g., bacteria, viruses, fungi) dynamics modeling.
- Understanding within-host pathogen processes is vital for predicting population-level responses to invasions, especially in wildlife.
- Existing models frequently simplify host-parasite interactions by not accounting for individual variation in pathogen load.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and apply a novel modeling framework, reduced-dimension host-parasite integral projection models (reduced IPMs).
- To investigate how within-host infection intensity influences pathogen invasion dynamics.
- To explore the evolution of virulence and its relationship with transmission in host-parasite systems.
Main Methods:
- Development of reduced-dimension host-parasite integral projection models (reduced IPMs).
- Simulation and analysis of host-parasite interactions incorporating infection intensity.
- Exploration of the relationship between pathogen load, host mortality, and transmission rates.
Main Results:
- Individual-level heterogeneity in pathogen load generally decreases pathogen invasion probability.
- Varying pathogen loads dampen the predicted virulence-transmission trade-offs, potentially explaining empirical difficulties in observing them.
- Intensity-dependent host mortality does not always result in a virulence-transmission trade-off; steeper relationships increase the likelihood of observing trade-offs.
Conclusions:
- Reduced IPMs offer a powerful framework for integrating within-host processes into population-level disease dynamics.
- Host-parasite interactions are significantly shaped by variation in pathogen load, affecting invasion and virulence.
- The study highlights the importance of considering infection intensity for a more accurate understanding of disease ecology and evolution.
Keywords:
disease-induced mortalityintegral projection modelsmacroparasitemicroparasitemoment-closure approximationvirulence-transmission trade-offMore Related Videos
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