The mystery of sleeping sickness – why does it keep waking up?

Snapshots of modern mathematics from Oberwolfach

The mystery of sleeping sickness – why does it keep waking up?

Sleeping sickness is a neglected tropical disease that affects rural populations in Africa. Deadly when untreated, it is being targeted for elimination through case finding and treatment. Yet, fundamental questions about its transmission cycle remain unanswered. One of them is whether transmission is limited to humans, or whether other species play a role in maintaining circulation of the disease. In this snapshot, we introduce a mathematical model for the spread of Trypanosoma brucei, the parasite responsible for causing sleeping sickness, and present some results based on data collected in Cameroon. Understanding how important animals are in harbouring Trypanosoma brucei that can infect humans is important for assessing whether the disease could be reintroduced in human populations even after all infected people have been successfully treated.

 

If you are interested in translating this Snapshot, please contact us at info@imaginary.org

Mathematical subjects

Numerics and Scientific Computing

Connections to other fields

Life Science

Author(s)

Sebastian Funk

License

DOI (Digital Object Identifier)

10.14760/SNAP-2015-015-EN

Download PDF

PDF

snapshots: overview

Mathematical subjects

Algebra and Number Theory
Analysis
Didactics and Education
Discrete Mathematics and Foundations
Geometry and Topology
Numerics and Scientific Computing
Probability Theory and Statistics

Connections to other fields

Chemistry and Earth Science
Computer Science
Engineering and Technology
Finance
Humanities and Social Sciences
Life Science
Physics
Reflections on Mathematics

These icons are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license. Please feel free to use them to classify your own content.
The vector icons can be downloaded here.