The Impact of Human Activities on Zoonotic Infection Transmissions

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Human activities, such as changing the environmental landscape or developing animal-related tourist attractions and zoos, have greatly increased the interactions between humans and animals. Due to this increase in direct contact between humans and animals, the risk of transmission of infections called zoonoses, meaning originating in animals, has increased. We aim to review how human activities have driven zoonoses and why it is so important to study this topic in order to help develop preventative measures against further zoonotic infections in the public. ABSTRACT: As humans expand their territories across more and more regions of the planet, activities such as deforestation, urbanization, tourism, wildlife exploitation, and climate change can have drastic consequences for animal movements and animal–human interactions. These events, especially climate change, can also affect the arthropod vectors that are associated with the animals in these scenarios. As the COVID-19 pandemic and other various significant outbreaks throughout the centuries have demonstrated, when animal patterns and human interactions change, so does the exposure of humans to zoonotic pathogens potentially carried by wildlife. With approximately 60% of emerging human pathogens and around 75% of all emerging infectious diseases being categorized as zoonotic, it is of great importance to examine the impact of human activities on the prevalence and transmission of these infectious agents. A better understanding of the impact of human-related factors on zoonotic disease transmission and prevalence can help drive the preventative measures and containment policies necessary to improve public health.