Stage-Structured Transmission Of Phocine Distemper Virus In The Dutch 2002 Outbreak

Main Category: Veterinary
Also Included In: Biology / Biochemistry
Article Date: 11 Apr 2009 - 1:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

A mass die-off of harbour seals occurred throughout the North Sea in 2002 caused by phocine distemper virus. Previous models used to study the outbreak assumed that all seals transmitted the virus similarly.

We challenged this assumption, creating models for Holland where transmission depended on life-stages of seals and found that they were more accurate. The transmission differences may have long-term effects on the harbour seal population since different transmission factors affect seals of different stages.

Moreover, different variabilities in human and animal populations should be considered for airborne diseases, which would allow targeting high-risk groups to interrupt transmission.

Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

Proceedings B is the Royal Society's flagship biological research journal, dedicated to the rapid publication and broad dissemination of high-quality research papers, reviews and comment and reply papers. The scope of the journal is diverse and is especially strong in organismal biology.

http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org

• Additional
• References
• Citations