Pathogenic landscapes: interactions between land, people & disease vectors
By Linda on Nov 30, 2010 in Infections
Excerpt:
RESULTS: We identified general principles governing landscape
epidemiology in these diverse disease systems and geographic
regions.
We formulated ten propositions that are related to landscape
attributes, spatial patterns and habitat connectivity, pathways
of pathogen transmission between vectors and hosts, scale issues,
land use and ownership, and human behaviour associated with
transmission cycles.
CONCLUSIONS: A static view of the
“pathogenecity” of landscapes overlays maps of the spatial
distribution of vectors and their habitats, animal hosts carrying
specific pathogens and their habitat, and susceptible human hosts
and their land use. A more dynamic view emphasizing the spatial
and temporal interactions between these agents at multiple scales
is more appropriate. We also highlight the complementarity of the
modelling approaches used in our case studies. Integrated
analyses at the landscape scale allows a better understanding of
interactions between changes in ecosystems and climate, land use
and human behaviour, and the ecology of vectors and animal hosts
of infectious agents.
