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Ecological multiplex interactions determine the role of species for parasite spread amplification

Ecological multiplex interactions determine the role of species for parasite spread amplification
Ecological multiplex interactions determine the role of species for parasite spread amplification

Despite their potential interplay, multiple routes of many disease transmissions are often investigated separately. As a unifying framework for understanding parasite spread through interdependent transmission paths, we present the ‘ecomultiplex’ model, where the multiple transmission paths among a diverse community of interacting hosts are represented as a spatially explicit multiplex network. We adopt this framework for designing and testing potential control strategies for Trypanosoma cruzi spread in two empirical host communities. We show that the ecomultiplex model is an efficient and low data-demanding method to identify which species enhances parasite spread and should thus be a target for control strategies. We also find that the interplay between predator-prey and host-parasite interactions leads to a phenomenon of parasite amplification, in which top predators facilitate T. cruzi spread, offering a mechanistic interpretation of previous empirical findings. Our approach can provide novel insights in understanding and controlling parasite spreading in real-world complex systems.

2050-084X
Stella, Massimo
37822c93-2522-4bc0-b840-ca32c75efbd7
Selakovic, Sanja
7233c377-b367-43c3-8803-c2a0c3ef7c2b
Antonioni, Alberto
6e2bfc87-11b9-4850-a84e-5dae12b46e72
Andreazzi, Cecilia S.
e6e76517-edf5-46de-bac3-50be907db306
Stella, Massimo
37822c93-2522-4bc0-b840-ca32c75efbd7
Selakovic, Sanja
7233c377-b367-43c3-8803-c2a0c3ef7c2b
Antonioni, Alberto
6e2bfc87-11b9-4850-a84e-5dae12b46e72
Andreazzi, Cecilia S.
e6e76517-edf5-46de-bac3-50be907db306

Stella, Massimo, Selakovic, Sanja, Antonioni, Alberto and Andreazzi, Cecilia S. (2018) Ecological multiplex interactions determine the role of species for parasite spread amplification. eLife, 7, [e32814]. (doi:10.7554/eLife.32814).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Despite their potential interplay, multiple routes of many disease transmissions are often investigated separately. As a unifying framework for understanding parasite spread through interdependent transmission paths, we present the ‘ecomultiplex’ model, where the multiple transmission paths among a diverse community of interacting hosts are represented as a spatially explicit multiplex network. We adopt this framework for designing and testing potential control strategies for Trypanosoma cruzi spread in two empirical host communities. We show that the ecomultiplex model is an efficient and low data-demanding method to identify which species enhances parasite spread and should thus be a target for control strategies. We also find that the interplay between predator-prey and host-parasite interactions leads to a phenomenon of parasite amplification, in which top predators facilitate T. cruzi spread, offering a mechanistic interpretation of previous empirical findings. Our approach can provide novel insights in understanding and controlling parasite spreading in real-world complex systems.

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elife-32814-v2 (1) - Version of Record
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More information

Accepted/In Press date: 20 April 2018
e-pub ahead of print date: 23 April 2018

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 424357
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/424357
ISSN: 2050-084X
PURE UUID: 1a33263f-02dc-47db-ba5f-71253e0fb84b

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Date deposited: 05 Oct 2018 11:36
Last modified: 05 Jun 2024 19:44

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Contributors

Author: Massimo Stella
Author: Sanja Selakovic
Author: Alberto Antonioni
Author: Cecilia S. Andreazzi

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