In 2002, Trask Et Al

Essay

In 2002, Trask et al. published a study showing that a high frequency of HIV transmissions in Lusaka, Zambia occurred between marriage partners. Specifically, they studied a cohort of married couples where, at the beginning of the study, one partner was infected and the other was not. Later, the uninfected partner became infected. If you were doing this study, how could you use phylogenetic methods to determine whether the newly infected individual was likely infected by his/her partner? Briefly describe your study design and results that would support and results that would refute (you can use drawings if you wish) the partner-partner transmission scenario.