Chapter 6: Problem 30
Anderson and May (1979) describe a model in which the natural birth and death rates, \(a\) and \(b\), are not necessarily equal so that the disease-free population may grow exponentially: $$ \frac{d N}{d t}=(a-b) N $$ The disease increases mortality of infected individuals (additional rate of death by infection \(=\alpha\) ), as shown in the accompanying figure. In their terminology the population consists of the following: $$ \begin{aligned} &X=\text { susceptible class }(=S) \\ &Y=\text { infectious class }(=I) \\ &Z=\text { temporarily immune class }(=R) \end{aligned} $$ (a) Write equations describing the disease. (b) Show that the steady-state solution representing the presence of disease is given by Applications of Continuous Models to Population Dynamics 265 $$ \bar{X}_{2}=\frac{\alpha+b+v}{\beta}, \quad \bar{Y}_{2}=\frac{r}{\alpha} N, \quad \bar{z}_{2}=\frac{r}{\alpha}\left(\frac{\nu}{b+\gamma}\right) N_{2} $$ where $$ N_{2}=\frac{\alpha(\alpha+b+\nu)}{\beta(\alpha-r[1+\nu /(b+\gamma)])}, \quad \text { and } \quad r=a-b $$ (c) The steady state in part (b) makes biological sense whenever $$ \alpha>r\left(1+\frac{\nu}{b+\gamma}\right) $$ Interpret this inequality. (Note: Anderson and May conclude that disease can be a regulating influence on the population size.)
Short Answer
Step by step solution
Key Concepts
These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.