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  • Review Article
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Effects of climate change and human activities on vector-borne diseases

Nature Reviews Microbiology (2024)Cite this article

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Abstract

Vector-borne diseases are transmitted by haematophagous arthropods (for example, mosquitoes, ticks and sandflies) to humans and wild and domestic animals, with the largest burden on global public health disproportionately affecting people in tropical and subtropical areas. Because vectors are ectothermic, climate and weather alterations (for example, temperature, rainfall and humidity) can affect their reproduction, survival, geographic distribution and, consequently, ability to transmit pathogens. However, the effects of climate change on vector-borne diseases can be multifaceted and complex, sometimes with ambiguous consequences. In this Review, we discuss the potential effects of climate change, weather and other anthropogenic factors, including land use, human mobility and behaviour, as possible contributors to the redistribution of vectors and spread of vector-borne diseases worldwide.

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Fig. 1: Climate and weather effects on vector life cycle and pathogen transmission.
Fig. 2: Impact of extreme weather on vectors and vector-borne diseases.
Fig. 3: Potential impact of climate change on geographical distribution of vectors.
Fig. 4: Potential impact of land use on vectors and vector-borne diseases.
Fig. 5: Potential effects of human mobility and behaviour on vectors and vector-borne diseases.

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Acknowledgements

W.M.d.S. is supported by a Global Virus Network fellowship, Burroughs Wellcome Fund — Climate Change and Human Health Seed Grants (no. 1022448) and Wellcome Trust — Digital Technology Development Award in Climate Sensitive Infectious Disease Modelling (no. 226075/Z/22/Z). S.C.W. is supported by National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant AI120942.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, University of Kentucky, College of Medicine, Lexington, KY, USA

    William M. de Souza

  2. World Reference Center for Emerging Viruses and Arboviruses, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA

    William M. de Souza & Scott C. Weaver

  3. Institute for Human Infections and Immunity, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA

    William M. de Souza & Scott C. Weaver

  4. Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA

    William M. de Souza & Scott C. Weaver

  5. Global Virus Network, Baltimore, MD, USA

    William M. de Souza & Scott C. Weaver

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Glossary

Anthropogenic

Resulting from the influence of humans on nature.

Enzootic

Ancestral, often continuous cycles of zoonotic arboviruses involving wild animals serving as amplification and/or reservoir hosts.

Epizootic

An outbreak of disease in non-human animal populations.

Global warming

Long-term heating of the Earth’s surface observed since the pre-industrial period.

Spillback

Transmission of pathogens from humans to wild animals, sometimes resulting in stable enzootic cycles.

Spillover

Pathogen transmission from zoonotic wildlife hosts to humans, sometimes resulting in stable human-amplified transmission.

Thermal performance curves

Effects of ambient temperature on biological rate processes of organisms, including vectors, from behaviour to biological processes, that can be used to predict the potential effects of global warming on ecological systems.

Tipping points

Critical thresholds in a climate system that, when exceeded, can lead to a significant change in the climate state, often with predicted irreversible changes.

Trans-stadial transmission

Sequential passage of pathogens acquired during one life stage, or stadium, through the moult to the next stage or stages, or stadium.

Vector competence

The intrinsic ability of an arthropod to become infected and transmit a pathogen.

Zoonotic

Infections that spill over from non-human animals to humans.

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de Souza, W.M., Weaver, S.C. Effects of climate change and human activities on vector-borne diseases. Nat Rev Microbiol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41579-024-01026-0

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