Reproducibility of feedback patterns across species and pathogen types.

<p>Bovines and humans exposed to either bacteria (both sensitive and resistant to anti-microbials) or parasites showed patterns similar to those displayed by birds (<b>A</b>–<b>F</b>). <b>A</b>, <b>B</b>: Leukocyte profiles and microbial test results of 6 dairy cows inoculated at day 0 with non-methicillin resistant (non-MRSA) <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i>, followed over two weeks, are reported (total: 24 longitudinal observations, data previously reported, using a different analytical method <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0053984#pone.0053984-Rivas1" target="_blank">[44]</a>). <b>C</b>, <b>D</b>: Leukocyte profiles of 439 humans non-infected or infected by malaria, tested once, are reported, of whom five displayed high MC/N values and malaria-positive test results and were tested twice (two weeks apart), becoming malaria-negative in the later test (total: 444 observations, data previously reported, using a different analytical method <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0053984#pone.0053984-Novelli1" target="_blank">[61]</a>). <b>E</b>, <b>F</b>: Longitudinal profiles of bovine mammary gland leukocytes collected from a cow spontaneously infected with methicillin-resistant <i>S. aureus</i> (MRSA) are shown (total: 28 longitudinal observations or 7 daily tests per mammary gland, a study previously reported, in which a different analytical method, a different technology, and different samples were utilized <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0053984#pone.0053984-Pilla1" target="_blank">[54]</a>). <b>G</b>: Cross-sectional leukocyte profiles of humans infected by either MRSA (n = 7) or non-MRSA (n = 15) bacterial isolates are described (data not previously reported). DPI: day(s) postinoculation with non-MRSA. DAYS: consecutive days since MRSA was isolated (day 1 = day of first isolation). Left columns show temporal data, in longitudinal studies (<b>A</b>, <b>E</b>); or disease-positive (D+) and disease-negative (D–) malaria-related data subsets (<b>C</b>). Right columns display microbial test results (<b>B</b>, <b>D</b>, <b>F</b>, <b>G</b>). Microbial-negative results that revealed high N/L values were suspected to be false negative (boxes, <b>C</b>–<b>F</b>). In the malaria study, 8 false negatives were detected (8 black circular symbols, of which one is shown within a box, <b>C</b>), which were associated with fever. Arrows indicate the directionality of temporal responses (<b>A</b>, <b>C</b>, <b>E</b>). <b>H</b>: To facilitate visual detection of patterns, the same data displayed in plot C are shown again, with emphasis on D– data (the symbols of D+ data are reduced in size). A data inflection is observed, which distinguishes two D– subsets. The high N/L subset (black polygon, <b>H</b>), as indicated in the main text, was suspected (and later confirmed) to include false negatives.