Spatiotemporal Distribution of Zika Virus and Its Spatially Heterogeneous Relationship with the Environment

Jie Li, Kun Jia, Yanxu Liu, Bo Yuan, Mu Xia and Wenwu Zhao
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Jie Li: State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Kun Jia: State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Yanxu Liu: State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Bo Yuan: State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Mu Xia: State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Wenwu Zhao: State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 1, 1-14

Abstract: Infectious diseases have caused some of the most feared plagues and greatly harmed human health. However, despite the qualitative understanding that the occurrence and diffusion of infectious disease is related to the environment, the quantitative relations are unknown for many diseases. Zika virus (ZIKV) is a mosquito-borne virus that poses a fatal threat and has spread explosively throughout the world, impacting human health. From a geographical perspective, this study aims to understand the global hotspots of ZIKV as well as the spatially heterogeneous relationship between ZIKV and environmental factors using exploratory special data analysis (ESDA) model. A geographically weighted regression (GWR) model was used to analyze the influence of the dominant environmental factors on the spread of ZIKV at the continental scale. The results indicated that ZIKV transmission had obvious regional and seasonal heterogeneity. Population density, GDP per capita, and landscape fragmentation were the dominant environmental factors affecting the spread of ZIKV, which indicates that social factors had a greater influence than natural factors on the spread of it. As SARS-CoV-2 is spreading globally, this study can provide methodological reference for fighting against the pandemic.

Keywords: ZIKV; spatiotemporal distribution; socio-ecological environmental factors; ESDA-GIS model; GWR model; SARS-CoV-2 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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