Habitat fragmentation, biodiversity loss and the risk of novel infectious disease emergence.

ABSTRACT: The number of microbes on Earth may be 1030, exceeding all other diversity. A small number of these can infect people and cause disease. The diversity of parasitic organisms likely correlates with the hosts they live in and the number mammal hosts for zoonotic infections increases with species richness among mammalian orders. Thus, while habitat loss and fragmentation may reduce species diversity, the habitat encroachment by people into species-rich areas may increase the exposure of people to novel infectious agents from wildlife. Here, we present a theoretical framework that exploits the species-area relationship to link the exposure of people to novel infections with habitat biodiversity. We model changes in human exposure to microbes through defined classes of habitat fragmentation and

SUBMITTER: Wilkinson DA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6303791 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature