Modeling and optimal control of dengue disease with screening and information

This study presents a mathematical model for dengue transmission which quantifies two very important aspects: one, the impact of information-based behavioural response, and the other, the segregation of infected human population into two subclasses, ‘detected’ and ‘undetected’. For the proposed model, the sensitivity analysis is conducted to identify the key model parameters which not only influence the basic reproduction number, but also regulate the transmission of dengue. Further, in order to find the optimal pathways for suitable control interventions that reduce the dengue prevalence and economic burden, an optimal control problem is proposed by considering information-induced behavioural change, quarantine, screening, use of repulsive measures and culling of mosquitoes as control interventions. A weighted sum of various costs incurred in applied controls and the cost due to dengue disease (productivity loss) is incorporated in the proposed cost functional. The analysis of control system using Pontryagin’s maximum principle leads the existence of the optimal control profiles. Further, an exhaustive comparative study for seven different control strategies is conducted numerically. Our findings emphasize that every individual control strategy has their own impact on reducing the cumulative count of infection as well as cost. The combined impact of all control interventions is highly effective and economically viable in controlling the prevalence of dengue. We also investigated the effect of the basic reproduction number on the designed control strategies and observed that the comprehensive use of controls keeps a strong tab on the infective even if the severity of epidemic is high

The effects of public health measures on severe dengue cases: An optimal control approach

Dengue fever is the most important viral mosquito-borne disease worldwide, with approximately 3.9 billion people at risk of acquiring dengue infection. Measures against mosquito bite combined with vector control programs to reduce mosquito population have been used in endemic countries for several years. Most recently, vaccines have become an important ally to prevent and control disease transmission. Economic costs of dengue control programs vary from region to region and therefore designing an optimal control strategy must be evaluated at different epidemiological contexts. Using a multi-strain vector-host mathematical model, we investigate the impact of different control measures to reduce dengue prevalence. A detailed sensitivity analysis to identify the key parameters influencing disease transmission is followed by an exploratory analysis of the possible solutions for the optimal control problem considering preventive measures to avoid mosquito bites, reduce mosquito population and vaccinate human hosts. The proposed cost functional includes a weighted sum of several efforts (not necessarily quantified as economic costs) for the controls which are evaluated alone and combined. The control system is analyzed using the Pontryagin`s Principle for optimal control where different strategies are compared. Our results have shown that the simultaneous use of intervention measures are highly effective to reduce disease cases, however, the use of a single control measure can be as effective as the use of two or more controls combined. A careful evaluation of the epidemiological scenario is advised before designing strategies for disease prevention and control, allowing an optimal allocation of the public health resources

Within-host models unravelling the dynamics of dengue reinfections

Caused by four serotypes, dengue fever is a major public health concern worldwide. Current modeling efforts have mostly focused on primary and heterologous secondary infections, assuming that lifelong immunity prevents reinfections by the same serotype. However, recent findings challenge this assumption, prompting a reevaluation of dengue immunity dynamics. In this study, we develop a within-host modeling framework to explore different scenarios of dengue infections. Unlike previous studies, we go beyond a deterministic framework, considering individual immunological variability. Both deterministic and stochastic models are calibrated using empirical data on viral load and antibody (IgM and IgG) concentrations for all dengue serotypes, incorporating confidence intervals derived from stochastic realizations. With good agreement between the mean of the stochastic realizations and the mean field solution for each model, our approach not only successfully captures primary and heterologous secondary infection dynamics facilitated by antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE) but also provides, for the first time, insights into homotypic reinfection dynamics. Our study discusses the relevance of homotypic reinfections in dengue transmission at the population level, highlighting potential implications for disease prevention and control strategies

Vitamin D metabolites affect serum calcium and phosphate in freshwater catfish, Heteropneustes fossilis

金沢大学環日本海域環境研究センター生物多様性研究部門The effects of vitamin D3, 24,25(OH)2 vitamin D3, 25(OH) vitamin D3 and 1,25(OH)2 vitamin D3 were investigated on the serum calcium and phosphate levels of freshwater catfish, Heteropneustes fossilis. The fish were injected daily intraperitoneally with these secosteroids for 10 days. Blood samples were collected at day 1, 3, 5 and 10. Serum calcium and inorganic phosphate levels were elevated by all of the treatments except for 24,25(OH)2 vitamin D3

Optimal vaccine allocation for the control of sexually transmitted infections

The burden of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) poses a challenge due to its large negative impact on sexual and reproductive health worldwide. Besides simple prevention measures and available treatment efforts, prophylactic vaccination is a powerful tool for controlling some viral STIs and their associated diseases. Here, we investigate how prophylactic vaccines are best distributed to prevent and control STIs. We consider sex-specific differences in susceptibility to infection, as well as disease severity outcomes. Different vaccination strategies are compared assuming distinct budget constraints that mimic a scarce vaccine stockpile. Vaccination strategies are obtained as solutions to an optimal control problem subject to a two-sex Kermack– McKendrick-type model, where the control variables are the daily vaccination rates for females and males. One important aspect of our approach relies on conceptualizing a limited but specific vaccine stockpile via an isoperimetric constraint. We solve the optimal control problem via Pontryagin’sMaximum Principle and obtain a numerical approximation for the solution using a modified version of the forward–backward sweep method that handles the isoperimetric budget constraint in our formulation. The results suggest that for a limited vaccine supply (20%–30%vaccination coverage), onesex vaccination, prioritizing females, appears to be more beneficial than the inclusion of both sexes into the vaccination program.Whereas, if the vaccine supply is relatively large (enough to reach at least 40% coverage), vaccinating both sexes, with a slightly higher rate for females, is optimal and provides an effective and faster approach to reducing the prevalence of the infection

Complex Network Approaches for Epidemic Modeling: A Case Study of COVID-19

Since the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak, the importance of mathematical modeling as a tool for comprehending disease dynamics has been highlighted, with several mathematical modeling techniques being applied and developed to simulate and measure the impact of interventions aimed at controlling the spread of the disease and minimizing its burden. In this work, we applied complex network techniques to analyze a Susceptible-Exposed-Asymptomatic-Hospitalized-Recovered (SEAHR) model to describe COVID-19 transmission dynamics, using the Basque Country region of Spain as a case study. We compared two network modeling approaches: the Watts-Strogatz network and the Barabasi-Albert scale-free network. By applying immunization strategies on both networks, we demonstrate that targeted immunization yields superior results within a scale-free network due to its increased heterogeneity. Moreover, the basic reproduction number of the model is calculated, and sensitivity analysis is performed to determine the influence of the model parameters on the disease dynamics.Juan de la Cierva Formación grant FJC2021-046826-I

STUDY OF A NEW CESTODE PESUDOADENOSCOLEX FOSSILIS N.G., N.SP. FROM FRESHWATER CATFISH, HETEROPNEUSTES FOSSILIS (BL.)

A NEW CESTODE PESUDOADENOSCOLEX FOSSILIS N.G., N.SP. IS DESCRIBED FROM THE FRESHWATER CATFISH HETEROPNEUSTER FOSSILIS (Bloch.