PARAMETRA : a transmission modelling database for livestock diseases
- Author
- Alistair Antonopoulos, Natalia Ciria, Áine Regan, Jerrold Tubay, Giovanna Ciaravino, Brandon Hayes, Sébastien Lambert, Timothée Vergne, Francisca Velkers, Evelien Biebaut (UGent) , Arvo Viltrop, Jeroen Dewulf (UGent) , Johannes Charlier, Egil Fischer and Alberto Allepuz Palau
- Organization
- Project
- Abstract
- Dynamic modelling of infectious diseases of importance to livestock production is a valuable tool for policy and decision makers. Mathematical and simulation models play an essential role in understanding complex systems, but parameterising these models can be challenging, especially in data-sparse environments. When parameters are unable to be estimated from epidemiological or experimental data, a time-consuming and labour-intensive literature review—to identify suitable literature-informed values—is often necessary. In service of this, here we present PARAMETRA, a parameter database for 20 pathogens of livestock, envisaged as an open-source collaborative tool for the research community to aid in the development of future transmission models of livestock pathogens. Pathogens included in the database so far were selected using a disease prioritisation exercise. Parameters of interest were selected by experts with a strong background in epidemiology and mathematical modelling. We populated the database with over 2000 individual values, covering a wide range of different parameters including transmission rates, diagnostic test efficacies, pathogen survival on surfaces, and the farm and regional level prevalences of selected diseases. Finally, we present an initial illustrative analysis of the database contents and the associated metadata of studies included. One of the principal conclusions we can draw from the data available is that in many cases research is reactive, rather than proactive, with research only tending to focus on specific diseases after outbreaks have already occurred, as is the case for African swine fever for example. This has important implications for future research moving to a more proactive approach for experimental and epidemiological studies based on observations of gaps in the data, and high-risk diseases. This publication represents the first step in development for the PARAMETRA database, which will be updated and expanded in the coming years.
- Keywords
- Epidemiology, Veterinary epidemiology, Transmission, Modelling, Mathematical modelling, Livestock, Livestock disease, Biosecurity, Database, Parameter, QUANTITATIVE RISK-ASSESSMENT, DAIRY-CATTLE HERDS, MOUTH-DISEASE, SWINE, FEVER, SPREAD, VIRUS, HEALTH
Downloads
-
publisher version.pdf
- full text (Published version)
- |
- open access
- |
- |
- 2.09 MB
Citation
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication: http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-01K598EC1EY1WH4Y47ZK9W2BKZ
- MLA
- Antonopoulos, Alistair, et al. “PARAMETRA : A Transmission Modelling Database for Livestock Diseases.” PREVENTIVE VETERINARY MEDICINE, vol. 245, 2025, doi:10.1016/j.prevetmed.2025.106668.
- APA
- Antonopoulos, A., Ciria, N., Regan, Á., Tubay, J., Ciaravino, G., Hayes, B., … Palau, A. A. (2025). PARAMETRA : a transmission modelling database for livestock diseases. PREVENTIVE VETERINARY MEDICINE, 245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2025.106668
- Chicago author-date
- Antonopoulos, Alistair, Natalia Ciria, Áine Regan, Jerrold Tubay, Giovanna Ciaravino, Brandon Hayes, Sébastien Lambert, et al. 2025. “PARAMETRA : A Transmission Modelling Database for Livestock Diseases.” PREVENTIVE VETERINARY MEDICINE 245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2025.106668.
- Chicago author-date (all authors)
- Antonopoulos, Alistair, Natalia Ciria, Áine Regan, Jerrold Tubay, Giovanna Ciaravino, Brandon Hayes, Sébastien Lambert, Timothée Vergne, Francisca Velkers, Evelien Biebaut, Arvo Viltrop, Jeroen Dewulf, Johannes Charlier, Egil Fischer, and Alberto Allepuz Palau. 2025. “PARAMETRA : A Transmission Modelling Database for Livestock Diseases.” PREVENTIVE VETERINARY MEDICINE 245. doi:10.1016/j.prevetmed.2025.106668.
- Vancouver
- 1.Antonopoulos A, Ciria N, Regan Á, Tubay J, Ciaravino G, Hayes B, et al. PARAMETRA : a transmission modelling database for livestock diseases. PREVENTIVE VETERINARY MEDICINE. 2025;245.
- IEEE
- [1]A. Antonopoulos et al., “PARAMETRA : a transmission modelling database for livestock diseases,” PREVENTIVE VETERINARY MEDICINE, vol. 245, 2025.
@article{01K598EC1EY1WH4Y47ZK9W2BKZ,
abstract = {{Dynamic modelling of infectious diseases of importance to livestock production is a valuable tool for policy and decision makers. Mathematical and simulation models play an essential role in understanding complex systems, but parameterising these models can be challenging, especially in data-sparse environments. When parameters are unable to be estimated from epidemiological or experimental data, a time-consuming and labour-intensive literature review—to identify suitable literature-informed values—is often necessary. In service of this, here we present PARAMETRA, a parameter database for 20 pathogens of livestock, envisaged as an open-source collaborative tool for the research community to aid in the development of future transmission models of livestock pathogens. Pathogens included in the database so far were selected using a disease prioritisation exercise. Parameters of interest were selected by experts with a strong background in epidemiology and mathematical modelling. We populated the database with over 2000 individual values, covering a wide range of different parameters including transmission rates, diagnostic test efficacies, pathogen survival on surfaces, and the farm and regional level prevalences of selected diseases. Finally, we present an initial illustrative analysis of the database contents and the associated metadata of studies included. One of the principal conclusions we can draw from the data available is that in many cases research is reactive, rather than proactive, with research only tending to focus on specific diseases after outbreaks have already occurred, as is the case for African swine fever for example. This has important implications for future research moving to a more proactive approach for experimental and epidemiological studies based on observations of gaps in the data, and high-risk diseases. This publication represents the first step in development for the PARAMETRA database, which will be updated and expanded in the coming years.}},
articleno = {{106668}},
author = {{Antonopoulos, Alistair and Ciria, Natalia and Regan, Áine and Tubay, Jerrold and Ciaravino, Giovanna and Hayes, Brandon and Lambert, Sébastien and Vergne, Timothée and Velkers, Francisca and Biebaut, Evelien and Viltrop, Arvo and Dewulf, Jeroen and Charlier, Johannes and Fischer, Egil and Palau, Alberto Allepuz}},
issn = {{0167-5877}},
journal = {{PREVENTIVE VETERINARY MEDICINE}},
keywords = {{Epidemiology,Veterinary epidemiology,Transmission,Modelling,Mathematical modelling,Livestock,Livestock disease,Biosecurity,Database,Parameter,QUANTITATIVE RISK-ASSESSMENT,DAIRY-CATTLE HERDS,MOUTH-DISEASE,SWINE,FEVER,SPREAD,VIRUS,HEALTH}},
language = {{eng}},
pages = {{9}},
title = {{PARAMETRA : a transmission modelling database for livestock diseases}},
url = {{http://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2025.106668}},
volume = {{245}},
year = {{2025}},
}
- Altmetric
- View in Altmetric
- Web of Science
- Times cited: