Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
3423707 | Trends in Parasitology | 2007 | 8 Pages |
Abstract
Coinfection of a host by multiple parasite species is commonly observed and recent epidemiological work indicates that coinfection can enhance parasite transmission. This article proposes an immunoepidemiological framework to understand how within-host interactions during coinfection might affect between-host transmission. Cytokines, immune signalling molecules with a fundamental role in the amplification of antiparasitic effector mechanisms, provide a useful way to simplify immunological complexity for this endeavour – focusing on cytokines offers analytical tractability without sacrificing realism. Testable predictions about the epidemiological consequences of coinfection are generated by this conceptual framework.
Related Topics
Life Sciences
Immunology and Microbiology
Parasitology
Authors
Andrea L. Graham, Isabella M. Cattadori, James O. Lloyd-Smith, Matthew J. Ferrari, Ottar N. Bjørnstad,