TY - JOUR
T1 - Disease emergence in multi-host epidemic models
AU - McCormack, Robert K.
AU - Allen, Linda J.S.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was supported by a grant from the Fogarty International Center # R01TW006986-02 under the National Institutes of Health National Science Foundation Ecology of Infectious Diseases initiative. We thank the referee for helpful suggestions.
PY - 2007/3
Y1 - 2007/3
N2 - Most pathogens are capable of infecting multiple hosts. These multiple hosts provide many avenues for the disease to emerge. In this investigation, we formulate and analyse multi-host epidemic models and determine conditions under which the disease can emerge. In particular, SIS and SIR epidemic models are formulated for a pathogen that can infect n different hosts. The basic reproduction number is computed and shown to increase with n, the number of hosts that can be infected. Therefore, the possibility of disease emergence increases with the number of hosts infected. The SIS model for two hosts is studied in detail. Necessary and sufficient conditions are derived for the global stability of an endemic equilibrium. Numerical examples illustrate the dynamics of the two- and three-host epidemic models. The models have applications to hantavirus in rodents and other zoonotic diseases with multiple hosts.
AB - Most pathogens are capable of infecting multiple hosts. These multiple hosts provide many avenues for the disease to emerge. In this investigation, we formulate and analyse multi-host epidemic models and determine conditions under which the disease can emerge. In particular, SIS and SIR epidemic models are formulated for a pathogen that can infect n different hosts. The basic reproduction number is computed and shown to increase with n, the number of hosts that can be infected. Therefore, the possibility of disease emergence increases with the number of hosts infected. The SIS model for two hosts is studied in detail. Necessary and sufficient conditions are derived for the global stability of an endemic equilibrium. Numerical examples illustrate the dynamics of the two- and three-host epidemic models. The models have applications to hantavirus in rodents and other zoonotic diseases with multiple hosts.
KW - Basic reproduction number
KW - Hantavirus
KW - Multi-host epidemic model
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=33847679359&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/imammb/dql021
DO - 10.1093/imammb/dql021
M3 - Article
C2 - 17012365
AN - SCOPUS:33847679359
SN - 1477-8599
VL - 24
SP - 17
EP - 34
JO - Mathematical Medicine and Biology
JF - Mathematical Medicine and Biology
IS - 1
ER -