Ecological Niche Modelling Approaches: Challenges and Applications in Vector-Borne Diseases

Overview

Journal Trop Med Infect Dis

Specialty Infectious Diseases

Date 2023 Apr 27

PMID 37104313

Authors

Pablo Fernando Cuervo

Patricio Artigas

Jacob Lorenzo-Morales

Maria Dolores Bargues

Santiago Mas-Coma

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Vector-borne diseases (VBDs) pose a major threat to human and animal health, with more than 80% of the global population being at risk of acquiring at least one major VBD. Being profoundly affected by the ongoing climate change and anthropogenic disturbances, modelling approaches become an essential tool to assess and compare multiple scenarios (past, present and future), and further the geographic risk of transmission of VBDs. Ecological niche modelling (ENM) is rapidly becoming the gold-standard method for this task. The purpose of this overview is to provide an insight of the use of ENM to assess the geographic risk of transmission of VBDs. We have summarised some fundamental concepts and common approaches to ENM of VBDS, and then focused with a critical view on a number of crucial issues which are often disregarded when modelling the niches of VBDs. Furthermore, we have briefly presented what we consider the most relevant uses of ENM when dealing with VBDs. Niche modelling of VBDs is far from being simple, and there is still a long way to improve. Therefore, this overview is expected to be a useful benchmark for niche modelling of VBDs in future research.

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