Who acquires infection from whom? Estimating herpesvirus transmission rates between wild rodent host groups

• DOI: 10.1016/j.epidem.2021.100451
• Publication Date: 2021-03-14T06:08:28Z
• Authors: Diana Erazo; Amy B. Pedersen; Kayleigh Gallagher; Andy Fenton
• Keywords: Rodent model

To date, few studies of parasite epidemiology have investigated 'who acquires infection from whom' in wildlife populations. Nonetheless, identifying routes disease transmission within a population, and determining the key groups individuals that drive maintenance, are fundamental to understanding dynamics. Gammaherpesviruses widespread group DNA viruses infect many vertebrate species, murine gammaherpesviruses (i.e. MuHV-4) standard lab model for studying human herpesviruses, which much about pathology immune response elicited is well understood. However, despite this extensive research effort, primarily lab, route their natural host populations not Here, we aimed understand wood mouse herpesvirus (WMHV) transmission, by fitting series population dynamic models field data on mice naturally infected with WMHV then estimating parameters between demographic population. Different accounted different combinations sex (male/female), age (subadult/adult) functions (density/frequency-dependent). We found density-dependent incorporating explicit fitted better than all other proposed models. Male-to-male was highest among possible between- within-sex classes, suggesting male behaviour factor driving transmission. Our also suggest sexes, although important, wasn't symmetrical, males playing significant role infecting naïve females but vice versa. Overall work shows power coupling long-term elucidate otherwise unobservable processes wild systems.