Multi-Host and Multi-Pathogen/Parasite Systems

Pathogens are classified as specialists or generalists depending on how many distinct host species they infect and how closely they are connected phylogenetically. The geographic ranges of infections and hosts, as well as host and pathogen phylogeny and life cycle features, can all be linked to host range. It's worth mentioning that the distinction between a narrow and a wide host range is subjective. Understanding the patterns of disease transmission among animal communities is critical for enhancing pathogen surveillance and risk management in humans and livestock. The majority of mammalian infections are multi-host pathogens or multi-host parasites, which are generalists that infect numerous host species. Some multi-host diseases have a sylvatic transmission cycle in which the pathogen is totally maintained in multiple wildlife species.

• Modelling Disease Ecology
• Ecology of Multi-host Pathogens
• Potential Parasite Transmission