Effects of climate change on virus transmission: a challenge for public health

Abstract

Climate change, driven by human activity and industrial society, is one of the most significant threats that the planet is facing today, with effects ranging from rising global temperatures to the destabilization of ecosystems. In the case of this article, we will focus more on one of the less discussed consequences: the effect of climate change on the mechanisms of viral spread. Mainly, this is due to the migration of many animal species, forced to leave their habitat due to climate changes to find a more favorable one, and which can carry unknown diseases that could be transmitted to humans. Among these species, it is interesting to highlight one of the main viral vectors, mosquitoes, since, thanks to the tropicalization of many ecosystems caused by global warming, their expansion is greatly favored, and consequently also the spread of diseases that they transmit. In addition, there are other consequences that must be considered, such as the thawing of the permafrost. It contains potentially infectious old viruses against which the human immune system is not prepared, and which could be released by rising temperatures. For all these reasons, it is interesting to dig deeper into the relationship between climate change and viruses in order to prepare effective prevention mechanisms.