Frontiers in Mathematical Biology

Impact of enhanced malaria control on the competition between Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax

Olivia Prosper

University of Florida

The primary focus of malaria research and control has been on P. falciparum, the most severe of the four Plasmodium species causing human disease. However, Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax commonly circulate in the same populations, particularly in Southeast Asia. We developed a mathematical model describing the dynamics of P. vivax and P. falciparum in the human and mosquito populations and fit this model to clinical case data to understand how improving control measures affects the competition between the two Plasmodium species.