Work

No coexistence for free: Neutral null models for multistrain pathogens

Year: 2008

Type: article

Abstract: In most pathogens, multiple strains are maintained within host populations. Quantifying the mechanisms underlying strain coexistence would aid public health planning and improve understanding of disease dynamics. We argue that mathematical models of strain coexistence, when applied to indistinguishable strains, should meet criteria for both ecological neutrality and population genetic neutrality. We show that closed clonal transmission models which can be written in an "ancestor-tracing" form that meets the former criterion will also satisfy the latter. Neutral models can be a parsimonious starting point for studying mechanisms of strain coexistence; implications for past and future studies are discussed.

Source: Epidemics

DOI: 10.1016/j.epidem.2008.07.001

Authors: Marc Lipsitch, Caroline Colijn, Ted Cohen, William P. Hanage, Christophe Fraser

Institutions: Harvard University, University of Bristol, Imperial College London, Medical Research Council

Language: English

Topic: Mathematical and Theoretical Epidemiology and Ecology Models

Subfield: Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $2,730

Funders: National Institutes of Health, National Institute of General Medical Sciences