Viruses everywhere, far and wide.

[MARGARET FRANCES DISBURY]

In article <MAILQUEUE-101.941122095703.448 at molbiol.uct.ac.za>,
RYBICKI, ED <ed at molbiol.uct.ac.za> wrote:
> even given DELIBERATE introductions of 
>highly virulent viruses into susceptible populations (eg: 
>myxomatosis in rabbits in the 50's), populations crashed, but soon 
>recovered.  Less of the doom and gloom!~!


Yes, but this was the rabbit population, which breeds like .... 
um .. rabbits.  I grant your postulate, but "soon" in human terms 
is going to be centuries rather than years.  And humans have a 
longer maturation period than rabbits, fewer "pups" in a litter and 
can be *so* picky about which ones they breed with, that I'd expect 
it to take more centuries rather than fewer.

To put this into some kind of perspective, and possibly shoot 
down my contention  ;-)    does anyone have population statistics 
for the communities which were so badly hit by the common 
cold/influenza when they first encountered Western explorers ?

Fran
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Fran Disbury     JANET: mfd at uk.ac.aber    Internet: mfd at aber.ac.uk
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