Stability of a diffusive-delayed HCV infection model with general cell-to-cell incidence function incorporating immune response and cell proliferation.

In this work, we analyse the dynamics of a five-dimensional hepatitis C virus infection mathematical model including the spatial mobility of hepatitis C virus particles, the transmission of hepatitis C virus infection by mitosis process of infected hepatocytes with logistic growth, time delays, antibody response and cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) immune response with general incidence functions for both modes of infection transmission, namely virus-to-cell as well as cell-to-cell. Firstly, we prove rigorously the existence, the uniqueness, the positivity and the boundedness of the solution of the initial value and boundary problem associated with the new constructed model. Secondly, we found that the basic reproductive number is the sum of the basic reproduction number determined by cell-free virus infection, determined by cell-to-cell infection and determined by proliferation of infected cells. It is proved the existence of five spatially homogeneous equilibria known as infection-free, immune-free, antibody response, CTL response and antibody and CTL responses. By using the linearization methods, the local stability of the latter is established under some rigorous conditions. Finally, we proved the existence of periodic solutions by highlighting the occurrence of a Hopf bifurcation for a certain threshold value of one delay.