Deadly new virus could surface in UK due to climate change

Climate change may not just lead to a drastic change in weather patterns across the world but can also lead to the transmission of viruses from one country to another.

According to UK scientists, there is a high possibility of the Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) arriving in the country. The government's Science, Innovation, and Technology Committee has been informed that it is "highly likely" that the deadly virus will make its presence felt in the UK.

"We don't know what is going to arrive until it does. Some tick-borne infections such as Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever, are highly likely to spread in the UK through our ticks at some point," said Prof. James Wood, head of veterinary medicine at Cambridge University.

The UK may also see cases of other diseases such as Rift Valley fever, Zika, and breakbone fever due to the warm weather. The virus has already been reported in countries like Spain, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Namibia, per a report in The Mirror.

What is Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF)?

CCHF is spread to humans via tick bites or contact with raw meat and infected animal blood. There is no vaccine available for neither people nor animals. The disease kills 40% of the people infected.

Symptoms of viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF) include bleeding from orifices including the eyes, anus and mouth, headaches, vomiting, diarrhoea; and muscle pain. It is endemic in Africa, the Balkans, the Middle East, and Asia. It was first discovered in the Crimean Peninsula, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). In addition, it is already on the WHO's list of "priority" diseases.

Several other studies have made similar claims about climate change fuelling the spread of deadly epidemics in Europe.

In 2017, scientists from the University of Liverpool's Institute of Infection and Global Health studied 100 human infectious diseases to find out how likely they are to spread or change their range due to climate change in Europe.

It found that nearly two-thirds of the pathogens studied were sensitive to climate. The study further revealed that those most likely to be affected were diseases transmitted by ticks or insects, such as mosquitoes. Food, water, and soil-borne diseases were the next most climate-sensitive.

"Although there is a well-established link between climate change and infectious disease, we did not previously understand how big the effects will be and which diseases will be most affected," said Marie McIntyre at the time. McIntyre was the one who led the project at the institute.

"Climate sensitivity of pathogens is a key indicator that diseases might respond to climate change, so assessing which pathogens are most climate-sensitive, and their characteristics, is vital information if we are to prepare for the future."

In 2020, a Brazilian scientist also warned of the possible emergence of zoonotic diseases and global pandemics if rampant deforestation continued in Amazonia.

Speaking with AFP, David Lapola, an ecologist who studies the impact of human activity on the future ecosystem of forests, said the Amazon is a "huge reservoir of viruses."

Deforestation and urbanisation of such wild areas can lead to more outbreaks passed from animals to humans. It is believed that human intrusion into wild animals' habitats due to widespread deforestation could be one of the reasons for the coronavirus outbreak.

The severe respiratory illness, COVID-19, is believed to have passed from bats to humans as an impact of the rapid urbanisation of Hubei province in China.

Lapola believes that human health is bound to take a toll if we continue to disrupt the ecological system. A similar pattern was observed with HIV, Ebola, and dengue fever, the diseases that are caused by "viruses that emerged or spread on a huge scale because of ecological imbalances."