title: Guarding against the most dangerous emerging pathogens.
abstract: Control of emerging infectious diseases will be difficult because of the large number of disease-causing organisms that are emerging or could emerge and the great diversity of geographic areas in which emergence can occur. The modern view of the evolution of pathogen virulence--specifically its focus on the tradeoff between costs and benefits to the pathogen from increased host exploitation--allows control programs to identify and focus on the most dangerous pathogens (those that can be established with high virulence in human populations).
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Amherst College, Amherst, MA 01002-5000, USA. pwewald@amherst.edu
authors.forename: P W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Ewald
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001419:Bacteria / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity; D005075:Biological Evolution; D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000635:transmission; D003428:Cross Infection; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000517:prevention & control; D004199:Disease Vectors; D006801:Humans; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000821:virology; D014774:Virulence; D014780:Viruses / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity; D014871:Water Microbiology