Travelling Waves in Wolbachia Spread Dynamics

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Hauptverfasser: Qu, Zhuolin, Wu, Tong, Kwessi, Eddy
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2026
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author Qu, Zhuolin
Wu, Tong
Kwessi, Eddy
author_facet Qu, Zhuolin
Wu, Tong
Kwessi, Eddy
contents Wolbachia, a maternally transmitted endosymbiont, offers a powerful biological control strategy for mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue, Zika, and malaria. We develop an integro-difference equation (IDE) model that integrates Wolbachia's nonlinear growth with spatially explicit mosquito dispersal kernels to study invasion dynamics in heterogeneous landscapes. Analytical results establish the existence and uniqueness of monotone traveling waves and provide explicit estimates of invasion speeds as functions of dispersal and growth parameters. Four kernels: Gaussian, Laplace, exponential square-root, and Cauchy, represent a continuum from short- to long-range movement. Fat-tailed kernels generate faster, broader wavefronts, while compact ones limit spread. We also identify a critical bubble, the minimal localized profile required for sustained invasion. Numerical simulations in one- and two-dimensional domains confirm theoretical predictions and reveal parameter regimes governing invasion success. This framework quantifies how dispersal mechanisms shape Wolbachia's spread, thus informing targeted and efficient vector-control strategies.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_17590
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Travelling Waves in Wolbachia Spread Dynamics
Qu, Zhuolin
Wu, Tong
Kwessi, Eddy
Populations and Evolution
Dynamical Systems
Wolbachia, a maternally transmitted endosymbiont, offers a powerful biological control strategy for mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue, Zika, and malaria. We develop an integro-difference equation (IDE) model that integrates Wolbachia's nonlinear growth with spatially explicit mosquito dispersal kernels to study invasion dynamics in heterogeneous landscapes. Analytical results establish the existence and uniqueness of monotone traveling waves and provide explicit estimates of invasion speeds as functions of dispersal and growth parameters. Four kernels: Gaussian, Laplace, exponential square-root, and Cauchy, represent a continuum from short- to long-range movement. Fat-tailed kernels generate faster, broader wavefronts, while compact ones limit spread. We also identify a critical bubble, the minimal localized profile required for sustained invasion. Numerical simulations in one- and two-dimensional domains confirm theoretical predictions and reveal parameter regimes governing invasion success. This framework quantifies how dispersal mechanisms shape Wolbachia's spread, thus informing targeted and efficient vector-control strategies.
title Travelling Waves in Wolbachia Spread Dynamics
topic Populations and Evolution
Dynamical Systems
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.17590