The Changing Ecology of Infectious Diseases in Human

Abstract

A number of pathogens are continuing to be accounted for a major part of our i1l-heath, unwanted death and reasonably is a matter of serious concern. Anthropogenic disturbances of natural ecosystems like forest clearance, contamination of soil, water and food provide the ideal condition for the outbreak of parasitic diseases. Human population growth and malnutrition are also associated with the parasitic diseases. Interdisciplinary research involving foresters, ecologists, wildlife experts, and parasitologists is required for better understanding the current pattern of spread of human parasitic diseases along with their virulence. Agricultural irrigation, dam construction, and land degradation are related to spread of human parasitic diseases. Involvement of local communities in prevention of disease can increase the efficacy of disease management. The present paper highlights the consequences of anthropogenic ecological disturbances and other factors in spread of human parasitic diseases in light of recent findings.

Environmental change and the dynamics of parasitic diseases in the Amazon

“…This is the case of several "neglected" diseases, such as the leishmaniases, soil-transmitted helminthiases, schistosomiasis and onchocerciasis, which are endemic throughout the basin, or in parts of it. Many tropical parasitic diseases are changing, in different parts of the world (Mandal, 2011), including the Amazon, in aspects related to their ecological niches (e.g. urbanization of kala-azar); modes of transmission (e.g.…”

“…It has been acknowledged that the combined effects of environmental detrimental changes, in local land use and alterations in global climate disrupt the natural ecosystems and can increase the risk of transmission of parasitic disease to humans (Patz et al, 2000). Different mechanisms operate in this process (Patz and Confalonieri, 2005;Confalonieri and Aparicio, 2011) and an important one is the expansion of human populations into forest areas, resulting in the exposure of immunologically naïve human and domestic animal populations to pathogens occurring naturally in wildlife (Mandal, 2011).…”

The role of deforestation on American cutaneous leishmaniasis incidence: spatial‐temporal distribution, environmental and socioeconomic factors associated in the Brazilian Amazon

“…Environmental changes generated by the urbanisation, agriculture, road construction, logging, mining and hydroelectric construction have been associated with the occurrence of diseases in several places, including Brazil [7][8][9][10][11].…”

Potential Impact of Reforestation on the Emergence and Re-Emergence of Parasitic Diseases

“…Different processes are involved in this change (Patz and Confalonieri, 2005;Confalonieri and Aparicio 2011) and one of the most important is the increased population of humans in the forest areas. This has resulted into the transmission of naturally occurring diseases of wildlife to the immunosuppressant humans and domestic animals (Mandal 2011). Likewise, the same problems can be associated with the urban forests for the population of domestic and pet animals living in close proximity.…”