An age-structured extension to the vectorial capacity model.

Background: Vectorial capacity and the basic reproductive number (R(0)) have been instrumental in structuring thinking about vector-borne pathogen transmission and how best to prevent the diseases they cause. One of the more important simplifying assumptions of these models is age-independent vector mortality. A growing body of evidence indicates that insect vectors exhibit age-dependent mortality, which can have strong and varied affects on pathogen transmission dynamics and strategies for disease prevention.

Individual fecundity and senescence in Drosophila and medfly.

Evolutionary theory postulates that there should be a robust relationship between fecundity and longevity. Prior work has generally supported this concept, but has not shed much light on the mechanisms at play. In preceding work, we have developed and verified a mathematical model of Drosophila melanogaster female fecundity based on the analysis of empirical studies independently done by several different laboratories.

What fecundity patterns indicate about aging and longevity: insights from Drosophila studies.

The age pattern of fecundity is represented as a result of a superposition of two processes: the genetic fecundity program encoded in the organism's reproductive machinery and senescence of the reproductive system. Accumulation of oxidative damage produces the energy decline, which could potentially be used in reproduction. As a result, the age-declining process arises in the reproductive machinery at a critical age.