Grainne Long

My research focuses on the within-host ecology and transmission dynamics of infectious disease, in the context of host immune pressure.

Particular interests include:

Immunopathology and pathogen virulence evolution

Abundant biomedical literature demonstrates that immune responses can cause pathology ("immunopathology"). Yet few evolutionary biologists have considered how such a ubiquitous cause of disease may alter the evolution of pathogen virulence. Using a well established model of Bordetella pertussis and B. parapertussis infection in mice, I will test the assumptions and predictions of evolutionary theory.

• Do pathogens experience increased or decreased transmission when hosts suffer from immunopathology?
• Does the induction of immunopathology, as well as its effect upon transmission, vary by pathogen genotype?
• Does the induction of such immune responses affect how co-infecting lineages in a host compete?

Population dynamics and transmission

Transmission — the rate at which susceptible hosts are converted into infected hosts — is the driving force in the dynamics of any infectious disease. However, transmission has proven difficult to study effectively in both laboratory and field settings. Focusing on a rabbit cohort in which Bordetella bronchiseptica infection is endemic, I will investigate the molecular basis for Bordetella transmission. I am particularly interested in the role of host immunity as a transmission determinant.

The long term goal of this project will be to elucidate the transmission dynamics of multiple lineages of Bordetella bronchiseptica and the interactions among these lineages.