Environment, vector, or host? Using machine learning to untangle the mechanisms driving arbovirus outbreaks.

ABSTRACT: Climatic, landscape, and host features are critical components in shaping outbreaks of vector-borne diseases. However, the relationship between the outbreaks of vector-borne pathogens and their environmental drivers is typically complicated, nonlinear, and may vary by taxonomic units below the species level (e.g., strain or serotype). Here, we aim to untangle how these complex forces shape the risk of outbreaks of Bluetongue virus (BTV); a vector-borne pathogen that is continuously emerging and re-emerging across Europe, with severe economic implications. We tested if the ecological predictors of BTV outbreak risk were serotype-specific by examining the most prevalent serotypes recorded in Europe (1, 4, and 8). We used a robust machine learning (ML) pipeline and 23 relevant environmental f

SUBMITTER: Alkhamis MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9286057 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature