Abstract
Leishmaniasis is a neglected and emerging disease prevalent in Mediterranean and tropical climates. As such, the study and development of new models are of increasing importance. We introduce a new immuno-epidemiological model of visceral leishmaniasis in dogs. The within-host system is based on previouslyВ collectedВ and published data, showing the movement and proliferation of the parasite in the skin and the bone-marrow, as well as the IgG response. The between-host system structures the infected individuals inВ time-since-infection and is of vector-host type. The within-host system has a parasite-free equilibrium and at least one endemic equilibrium, consistent with the fact that infected dogs do not recover without treatment. We compute the basic reproduction number R0 of the immuno-epidemiological modelВ and provide the existence and stability results of the population-levelВ disease-free equilibrium. Additionally, we prove existence of an uniqueВ endemic equilibrium when R0 > 1, and evidence of backward bifurcation and existence of multiple endemic equilibria when R0 < 1.
Highlights
The leishmaniases are a group of diseases found in over 90 countries around the world, spread by over 30 species of the phlebotomine sand flies and infecting a variety of hosts including humans and dogs
We focus on zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis (ZVL), which has symptoms including enlarged spleen and liver and non-specific symptoms such as fever, weight loss, and anemia [1]
The leishmaniases are classified as a Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD), with an estimated 0.2-0.4 million new human cases per year [14] and hundreds of millions at risk of new infection [19]
Summary
The leishmaniases are a group of diseases found in over 90 countries around the world, spread by over 30 species of the phlebotomine sand flies and infecting a variety of hosts including humans and dogs. We plan to examine the parasite reproduction inside hosts with respect to the efficacy towards a vector, immune response, and treatment. Since these processes occur at a drastically different rate, we adopt the multi-scale approach. Courtenay et al [2] conclude that, while samples were taken from both the skin tissue and bone marrow to record parasite loads, it is the parasite load in the skin tissue that is the most reliable indicator of VL infection [2] We use this fact in the linking of the within- and between-host systems.
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