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Reservoir. The reservoir of an infectious agent is the habitat in which the agent normally lives, grows, and multiplies. Reservoirs include humans, animals, and the environment. The reservoir may or may not be the source from which an agent is transferred to a host.
- Infectious Agent
- Reservoir
- Portal of Exit
- Mode of Transmission
- Portal of Entry
- Susceptible Host
First in the chain of infection is the infectious agent, which is an organism capable of causing infection or disease. Examples of infectious agents include bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. For example, COVID-19 is an infectious agent.
The reservoir is where the infectious agent lives and multiplies. A reservoir could be a body of water, human, or animal. In the case of COVID-19, a person could be a reservoir for the virus.
The portal of exit is the way that the infectious agent leaves its reservoir. If a person is the reservoir for the pathogen, the portal of exit could be their nose and mouth when sneezing, their blood (a bloodborne pathogen), or the infectious agent could exit fecally. For example, COVID-19's portal of exit is the nose and mouth, which is why masks...
The mode of transmission explains how the infectious agent gets from the reservoir to the new host. The portal of exit is just how the pathogen exited, but the mode of transmission explains how it travels from there. This can include direct contact, respiratory droplets, airborne, vehicles like water or food, or vectors like mosquitoes, ticks, or f...
The portal of entry is how the infectious agent enters into the new host. This could be through the nose and mouth, through the eyes, or through the bloodstream (e.g., into an open wound). The portal of entry may be the same as the portal of exit. For example, COVID-19's respiratory droplet portal of entry is the nose and mouth, which is again why ...
A susceptible host is the recipient of the infection. The host must be susceptible; and not all hosts are susceptible. Hosts might not be susceptible because they have had the disease previously and developed antibodies against it. Some hosts have stronger immune systems than others, e.g., someone who is immunocompromised is a more susceptible host...
Jul 22, 2022 · A pathogen may have more than one living reservoir. In zoonotic diseases, animals act as reservoirs of human disease and transmit the infectious agent to humans through direct or indirect contact. In some cases, the disease also affects the animal, but in other cases the animal is asymptomatic.
Therefore, we define a reservoir as one or more epidemiologically connected populations or environments in which the pathogen can be permanently maintained and from which infection is transmitted to the defined target population.
- Daniel T. Haydon, Sarah Cleaveland, Louise H. Taylor, M. Karen Laurenson
- 10.3201/eid0812.010317
- 2002
- Emerg Infect Dis. 2002 Dec; 8(12): 1468-1473.
Sep 6, 2017 · A conceptual framework for understanding a reservoir of infection has been established through various studies that have emphasized different aspects of zoonotic diseases. 1, 2, 3, 4 However, empirical characterization of reservoirs often remains controversial and challenging.
- Luisa K Hallmaier-Wacker, Vincent J Munster, Sascha Knauf
- 10.1038/emi.2017.65
- 2017
- Emerg Microbes Infect. 2017 Sep; 6(9): e79.
In epidemiology, a reservoir is defined as a source or place in which an infectious agent can live and multiply, and from where it can be transmitted to human populations or other susceptible hosts. Reservoirs can be animals, humans or the environment.
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Apr 19, 2012 · Therefore, we define a reservoir as one or more epidemiologically connected populations or environments in which the pathogen can be permanently maintained and from which infection is transmitted to the defined target population.
