Evolutionary dynamics of viral populations with density-dependent dispersal.

Bacteriophages (phage) are viruses that infect and replicate within bacteria, and are thought to be the most plentiful and diverse organism in the world. They can also be used alongside antibiotics in treating drug-resistant bacterial infections. In addition, they offer an excellent laboratory system to study host-virus interactions more generally, as both the phage and its host can be manipulated with relative ease.
Most work thus far into the evolution of this system has been limited to the 'well-mixed' case, where each virus and host is subject to the same condition. Relatively little work has been done which looks at how this system evolves in more explicitly spatial settings, where different conditions may be experienced depending on location. This despite the prevalence of spatial structure in natural environments, such as in the gut or in soil.
This project aims to use the phage-bacteria system to investigate the spatial growth of a viral population, where the dispersal of the virus varies in time and space. The insights gained will hopefully be applicable to a wide range of viral and parasitic populations undergoing spatial range expansion.