5,139 research outputs found
Learning to be drier in the southern Murray-Darling Basin : setting the scene for this research volume
[Australian history] is like a giant experiment in ecological crisis and management, sometimes a horrifying concentration of environmental damage and cultural loss; sometimes a heartening parable of hope and learning. (Griffiths 2003:16, cited in Mackinnon 2007: 73)
Infection-acquired versus vaccine-acquired immunity in an SIRWS model
Despite high vaccine coverage, pertussis has re-emerged as a public health
concern in many countries. One hypothesis posed for re-emergence is the waning
of immunity. In some disease systems, the process of waning immunity can be
non-linear, involving a complex relationship between the duration of immunity
and subsequent boosting of immunity through asymptomatic re-exposure.
We present and analyse a model of infectious disease transmission to examine
the interplay between infection and immunity. By allowing the duration of
infection-acquired immunity to differ from that of vaccine-acquired immunity,
we explore the impact of the difference in durations on long-term disease
patterns and prevalence of infection.
Our model demonstrates that vaccination may induce cyclic behaviour, and its
ability to reduce the infection prevalence increases with both the duration of
infection-acquired immunity and duration of vaccine-acquired immunity. We find
that increasing vaccine coverage, while capable of leading to an increase in
overall transmission, always results in a reduction in prevalence of primary
infections, with epidemic cycles characterised by a longer interepidemic period
and taller peaks.
Our results show that the epidemiological patterns of an infectious disease
may change considerably when the duration of vaccine-acquired immunity differs
from that of infection-acquired immunity. Our study highlights that for any
particular disease and associated vaccine, a detailed understanding of the
duration of protection and how that duration is influenced by infection
prevalence is important as we seek to optimise vaccination strategies.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figure
Dana Campbell in a Sophomore Recital
This is the sophomore voice recital of Dana Campbell, accompanied by Janet Franks on the piano and assisted by Barry McVinney on the flute. The recital was held on March 18, 1994, in the Recital Hall of the Mabee Fine Arts Center
Monozygotic Twins Concordant for Infantile Autism: Follow-Up.
This paper presents a well-documented case of monozygotic male twins concordant for infantile autism, with a twelve-year follow-up. Assessments include birth records, laboratory studies, physical measurements, psychometrics and quantifiable behavioural ratings by independent raters using multiple scales. Possible aetiological factors of infantile autism, as well as outcome are discussed
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