A number of pathogens cause chronic infection in survivors of acute disease and this is believed to be a common means of persistence, including for highly virulent agents. We present a model in which transmission from chronically infected hosts causes chronic infection in naive individuals, without causing acute disease--indeed 'protecting' against it. Thus the pathogen obtains the benefit of virulence (high transmission rate), but mitigates against the cost (high host mortality). Recent findings suggest that rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV), a highly contagious and virulent pathogen, may also utilize this alternative, 'avirulent', mode of transmission. The model may resolve the paradox of how RHDV can be highly prevalent in some populations, in the absence of mortality. Differences in host demography determine whether avirulent transmission prevents large-scale mortality (as in most UK populations) or not. Other pathogens may exhibit similar behaviour and the implications for emerging diseases in general are discussed.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2869931 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s095026880200777x | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Biodegradable PHBVHHx-PEG/Collagen Hydrogel Scaffolds for Cartilage Repair.
Tissue Eng Part A
January 2025
Department of Orthopedic Surgery and Orthopedic Research Institute, Sports Medicine Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Recently, there has been increased attention on the treatment of cartilage repair. Overall, we constructed PHBVHHx-COL, a composite hydrogel of PHBVHHx-co-PEG and collagen, and evaluated its cartilage repair efficacy through and studies using hydrogel loaded with peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells (PBMSCs). Rheological properties and compressive mechanical properties of the hydrogels were systematically evaluated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSurface enzyme-polymerization endows Janus hydrogel tough adhesion and regenerative repair in penetrating orocutaneous fistulas.
Nat Commun
December 2024
Shanghai Key Laboratory of Anesthesiology and Brain Functional Modulation, Clinical Research Center for Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Translational Research Institute of Brain and Brain-Like Intelligence, Shanghai Fourth People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai, China.
Penetrating orocutaneous or oropharyngeal fistulas (POFs), severe complications following unsuccessful oral or oropharyngeal reconstruction, remain complex clinical challenges due to lack of supportive tissue, contamination with saliva and chewed food, and dynamic oral environment. Here, we present a Janus hydrogel adhesive (JHA) with asymmetric functions on opposite sides fabricated via a facile surface enzyme-initiated polymerization (SEIP) approach, which self-entraps surface water and blood within an in-situ formed hydrogel layer (RL) to effectively bridge biological tissues with a supporting hydrogel (SL), achieving superior wet-adhesion and seamless wound plugging. The tough SL hydrogel interlocked with RL dissipates energy to withstand external mechanical stimuli from continuous oral motions like chewing and swallowing, thus reducing stress-induced damage.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCardiovascular problems in rabbits in reference to hypothyroidism - a four-year retrospective study.
Pol J Vet Sci
December 2024
Department of Epizootiology and the Clinic of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Głęboka 30, 20-612 Lublin, Poland.
The effects of T4 are mainly manifested by positive ino- and chronotropism. The syndrome accompanying hypothyroidism in rabbits (impaired myocardial contractility and reduced ejection capacity) is caused by a deficiency of thyroid hormones - especially T4. The study group consisted of a total of 41 animals: 15 males and 26 females, ranging in age from 2 months to 8 years, with echocardiogram showing reduced fractional shortening (<30%), with normal results of heamatological and biochemical tests.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSynthesis, spectroscopic, computational, molecular docking, antidiabetic(in vitro & in vivo) DNA and BSA interaction studies of ruthenium(II) carboxylate complexes.
Spectrochim Acta A Mol Biomol Spectrosc
December 2024
Department of Chemistry, COMSATS University, Abbottabad 22060, KPK, Pakistan.
The ruthenium compounds have been known to have the wide range of potential applications as anticancer, antibacterial and anti-diabetic etc. The ligand substitutions play a vital role in enhancing the pharmacological and biological activities. In the present study, three ruthenium-metal based complexes, designated as (I-III), were synthesized and characterized employing element analysis, FTIR and HNMR.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMolecular profiles of blood from numerous species that differ in sensitivity to acute inflammation.
Mol Med
December 2024
Department of Pediatrics, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
Vertebrates differ over 100,000-fold in responses to pro-inflammatory agonists such as bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS), complicating use of animal models to study human sepsis or inflammatory disorders. We compared transcriptomes of resting and LPS-exposed blood from six LPS-sensitive species (rabbit, pig, sheep, cow, chimpanzee, human) and four LPS-resilient species (mice, rats, baboon, rhesus), as well as plasma proteomes and lipidomes. Unexpectedly, at baseline, sensitive species already had enhanced expression of LPS-responsive genes relative to resilient species.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!