Abstract
Since animal viruses are intracellular obligate parasites of vertebrates and invertebrates, in order to evolve in different hosts they had to maintain a balance between virulence in the host and the ability of the host to survive. When a virus is transmitted from one animal to another of the same species, the virulence remains unchanged, but when the same virus is transmitted from its natural host to a new species, the virulence may increase markedly due to the upset in ecological balance. Also when a virus is introduced into the same species in a new geographical location, an epidemic may ensue. All virus families display such changes in virulence. With the spread of colonization, new viruses infected people for the first time.
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© 1983 Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, The Hague
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Becker, Y., Hadar, J. (1983). Viruses as Selective Forces in Nature: Epidemics. In: Hadar, J. (eds) Molecular Virology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-3906-9_25
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-3906-9_25
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