Preprint Concept Paper Version 4 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Revisiting pathogen transmission in epidemiological models and its role in the disease-diversity relationship

Version 1 : Received: 19 October 2021 / Approved: 20 October 2021 / Online: 20 October 2021 (17:33:00 CEST)
Version 2 : Received: 1 February 2022 / Approved: 7 February 2022 / Online: 7 February 2022 (16:54:52 CET)
Version 3 : Received: 22 May 2022 / Approved: 23 May 2022 / Online: 23 May 2022 (06:01:25 CEST)
Version 4 : Received: 29 March 2023 / Approved: 30 March 2023 / Online: 30 March 2023 (15:26:45 CEST)
Version 5 : Received: 12 August 2024 / Approved: 20 August 2024 / Online: 20 August 2024 (04:35:58 CEST)

How to cite: Toorians, M. . E.; MacPherson, A.; Davies, T. J. Revisiting pathogen transmission in epidemiological models and its role in the disease-diversity relationship. Preprints 2021, 2021100295. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202110.0295.v4 Toorians, M. . E.; MacPherson, A.; Davies, T. J. Revisiting pathogen transmission in epidemiological models and its role in the disease-diversity relationship. Preprints 2021, 2021100295. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202110.0295.v4

Abstract

With the rising frequency of pathogen spillover worldwide, wildlife disease dynamics have received increased attention. There are many possible pathway a pathogen can invade and spread through a host population, and the assumed transmission model used to capture disease propagation can influence predictions of pathogen net reproductive success (R0), determining the outbreak dynamics. We synthesize a comprehensive overview of these models and overarching implications, using bovine Tuberculosis (Mycobacterium bovis) as a case study. We unify sub-models from the disease ecology literature and clarify the biological motivation behind these models and resulting ecological dynamics. We warn readers of pitfalls regarding the relative orders of the transmission parameters and reiterate that the contact rate determines the transmission model and thus defines key dynamical properties of an outbreak. Transmission in wildlife is linked to ecosystem and human health, and host community structure can mediate pathogen spread. We link these models with disease-biodiversity theories, by considering the role of host diversity in disease transmission, contributing to the debate on the effect of biodiversity and on disease outbreak potential. We decompose the various mechanisms of transmission in a stepwise process, and provide the reader a guide for modelling pathogens in both single-host and multi-host systems.

Keywords

epidemiological models; transmission; biodiversity; dilution effect

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

Comments (1)

Comment 1
Received: 30 March 2023
Commenter: Marjolein Toorians
Commenter's Conflict of Interests: Author
Comment: Changed the language of the paper to fit better in epidemiological literature.
Change title: Revisiting pathogen transmission in epidemiological models and its role in the disease-diversity relationship
Change body: Using language to better fit the literature in epidemiology, placing focus on revisiting existing models and proposing a framework to combine them.
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