Stability and Hopf Bifurcation Analysis for a Phage Therapy Model with and without Time Delay

Abstract

This study proposes a mathematical model that accounts for the interaction of bacteria, phages, and the innate immune response with a discrete time delay. First, for the non-delayed model we determine the local and global stability of various equilibria and the existence of Hopf bifurcation at the positive equilibrium. Second, for the delayed model we provide sufficient conditions for the local stability of the positive equilibrium by selecting the discrete time delay as a bifurcation parameter; Hopf bifurcation happens when the time delay crosses a critical threshold. Third, based on the normal form method and center manifold theory, we derive precise expressions for determining the direction of Hopf bifurcation and the stability of bifurcating periodic solutions. Finally, numerical simulations are performed to verify our theoretical analysis.