When myxoma virus was first released in Australia it was seen not only as a means of controlling rabbits but also an opportunity to understand the evolution of a disease in a new host. The virus quickly attenuated into less virulent variants while simultaneously rabbits built heritable resistance to the disease. Nonetheless, rather than rabbits quickly outstripping virus virulence, myxoma viruses have adapted and kept pace with increases in rabbit resistance by increasing in virulence and other attributes necessary for remaining highly transmissible. As well as benefitting the biological control of pest rabbits, this previously unrevealed chapter details the evolution of myxomatosis while also documenting the delays in reaching a consensus on the coevolution of myxoma virus virulence and rabbit resistance.

当粘液瘤病毒首次在澳大利亚发布时，它不仅被视为控制兔子的一种手段，而且还被视为了解新宿主疾病进化的机会。该病毒迅速减弱为毒性较低的变种，同时兔子建立了对该疾病的遗传抵抗力。尽管如此，粘液瘤病毒并没有迅速超过兔子的病毒毒力，而是通过增加毒力和保持高度传播所需的其他属性来适应并与兔子抵抗力的增加保持同步。除了有利于害虫兔子的生物防治之外，这一先前未公开的章节还详细介绍了粘液瘤病的演变，同时还记录了在粘液瘤病毒毒力和兔子抗性的共同进化方面达成共识的延迟。