On the global asymptotic stability of an infection-age structured competitive model

Abstract

We investigate an infection-age structured competitive epidemiological model involving multiple strains. While classical results establish competitive exclusion when a unique maximal basic reproduction number exists, we provide here a complete characterization of the asymptotic behavior for an arbitrary number of populations without assuming uniqueness of the maximal reproduction number. By means of integrated semigroups theory, persistence results, and Lyapunov functionals, we establish global asymptotic stability of equilibria and extend previous results obtained for simpler (ODE) models. A key contribution lies in overcoming technical difficulties related to the definition and differentiation of Lyapunov functionals, as well as in refining arguments based on the LaSalle invariance principle.