We develop and analyse a mathematical model for chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in the context of liver cancer, considering suboptimal adherence and drug resistance. The model incorporates the dynamics of hepatocytes, HBV, immune cells, and cytokines, represented by a system of ordinary differential equations. Treatment effects are modelled using efficacy functions that simulate the pharmacokinetics of two drugs, administered intravenously and orally. Our findings indicate that natural drug resistance increases HBV burden more significantly than suboptimal adherence in both monotherapy and combination therapy. Additionally, the results highlight the critical role of immune cells and cytokine responses and suggest that combination therapies are more effective at reducing HBV infection than monotherapies.
Speaker: Prof. Faraimunashe Chirove | Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics | University of Johannesburg
Chairperson: Dr. C.P.N. Ogbogbo | Department of Mathematics | University of Ghana
Meeting ID: 395 373 203 283 | Passcode: L3LGX3 | Teams: Link
All are cordially invited.
Bio
Faraimunashe Chirove is an associate professor of Applied Mathematics in the Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics at the University of Johannesburg. He is an NRF C2-rated (South Africa) scientist. He holds a Bachelor of Science honours in Mathematics and a Master of Science in Mathematics from the University of Zimbabwe. He obtained a PhD in Mathematics (Mathematical Biology) from the University of Botswana. He is a researcher in the field of Applied mathematics and Biomathematics with a research goal: “from omics to population dynamics”. He has published over 36 research articles in accredited journals through collaborations with researchers all over the world. His research interests have expanded into mathematical ecology, data-based and agent-based modelling, applications into zoonotic diseases, stochastic modelling, multi-scale modelling, antimicrobial resistance in agricultural settings and, systems mathematical biology. He is currently serving as the vice-president of the Southern Africa Mathematical Sciences Association (SAMSA).