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Automated Separation of C. elegans Variably Colonized by a Bacterial Pathogen
Published on: March 21, 2014
Effect of resistant compartment on pathogen strategy in partially migratory populations
Cynthia Shao1, Martha Torstenson2, Allison K Shaw2
1Department of Biochemistry, University of Minnesota Twin Cities, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States of America.
None:
Migration, the recurring movement of animals between habitats, can exert pressures on the pathogens they host. Properties of host populations can determine pathogen strategy (e.g. virulence) to increase pathogen fitness. To study the effect of adding a resistant compartment on virulence evolution, we developed an SIRS model and examined the winning pathogen strategy across different rates of recovery and of immunity loss. We find that when hosts spend a relatively long time in the resistant compartment, a more virulent pathogen evolves. These results have implications in conservation of migratory animal populations afflicted by disease.
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