How clustering affects epidemics in complex networks

Epidemic spreading is closely related with topology of complex networks. Besides heterogeneity in the number of contacts, the clustering of contacts can also have far-reaching epidemiological consequences. Here we investigate the effects of clustering coefficient on epidemic dynamics in complex networks. Results show that the effects of clustering on epidemics differ in different networks. In homogeneous networks, the clustering can inhibit the epidemics when the infection scale is small. However, the inhibition effect will be reduced as the infection goes on. While in heterogeneous networks, there is no inhibition effect during all the process of the infection, which is also confirmed in real networks.