W8: Sylvatic Rabies

Flashcards covering the epidemiology, modeling, and management strategies of sylvatic rabies (fox-mediated) in Europe and the UK.

Sylvatic rabies

A form of rabies involving wildlife species, defined by two main contexts: dogs transmitting rabies to wildlife species of conservation concern, or wildlife transmitting rabies to agricultural livestock.

Secondary dead-end host

A species that can contract a disease but does not typically pass it on; in the context of sylvatic rabies, livestock serve as these hosts for the rabies virus originating from wild animals.

Red fox ($Vulpes\,vulpes$)

The primary host for rabies in Europe; historically managed via culling, but more effectively controlled through oral vaccination programs.

Susceptible ($S$)

In epidemiological modeling, the class of animals that are currently healthy but can catch the rabies virus.

Exposed ($E$)

Animals that have contracted rabies but are still in the incubation period and are not yet infectious.

Infectious ($I$)

Rabid individuals that have completed the incubation period and are capable of infecting other animals.

Transmission coefficient ($\beta$)

In the susceptible class equation, this parameter represents the rate at which the disease is transmitted between Susceptible ($S$) and Infectious ($I$) individuals.

Progression rate ($\sigma$)

The rate at which Exposed ($E$) animals transition into the Infectious class ($I$) after the incubation period has elapsed.

Density-dependence ($\gamma$)

The parameter representing the strength of effects that retard population growth as the total population density ($N$) approaches the carrying capacity ($K$).

Oral vaccine baits

Baits dropped from aeroplanes (typically at densities of $20-25\,km^{-2}$) along transects to immunize wildlife such as foxes.

Seroconversion

The process by which a vaccine causes an appropriate immune response in a target species without causing full-blown disease.

Cordon sanitaire

A protective zone of countries in the East that border the current extent of fox rabies, protecting Western countries from a resurgence of the disease.

Muzzling laws and quarantine

The primary methods used to effectively eliminate canine rabies in the UK, which has been rabies-free since 1922.

Hexagonal simulation model

A spatial modeling approach for fox populations where each cell has 6 neighbors, favored because it more closely reflects radio-tracking data compared to square grids.

Alveolar echinococcosis

A disease mentioned as a point of conflict between foxes and humans, alongside farming, game shooting, and rabies.

$$R_0$$

The basic reproduction number; the goal of vaccination programs is to immunize enough foxes to ensure this value stays below $1$ (R_0 < 1).