Global Change and Infectious Disease
BIOL 173
Fall 2018
| Section:
01
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| Crosslisting:
ENVS 260 |
| Certificates: Environmental Studies |
| Course Cluster: Health Studies, Sustainability and Environmental Justice, Health Studies |
Among the most insidious effects of global change are the expanded geographical ranges and increased transmission of infectious diseases. Global warming is bringing tropical diseases, such as malaria, poleward from the tropics; the extreme weather events of a changed world are leading to outbreaks of zoonotic diseases, such as those caused by Hantaviruses; and nonclimatic anthropogenic factors, such as forest fragmentation, are taking their toll on human health, for example, by increasing the incidence of Lyme disease. This course will cover the evidence that global change has increased the geographical ranges and rates of incidence of infectious diseases in humans, in agricultural animals and plants, and in endangered species. We will explore how interactions between different anthropogenic effects (for example, habitat loss and pollution) exacerbate the effects of global warming on infectious diseases. We will analyze and critique projections for future changes in geographic ranges in infectious diseases. Finally, we will cover how revolutions in bioinformatics will increase the resolution of tracking and predicting responses of disease organisms to global change. The course has no formal prerequisites and will introduce material from ecology and microbiology, as needed, to allow students to read and interpret the recent literature on global change and infectious disease. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
NSM BIOL |
| Course Format: Lecture / Discussion | Grading Mode: Student Option |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (ENVS-MN)(ENVS)(HRAD-MN) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: 75% - 89% |
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