Tropical viruses: coming soon to Europe?

The mosquito-borne viral disease Chikungunya is usually found in tropical areas. Researchers from the Chair of Biogeography at the University of Bayreuth and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) in Stockholm analyze in a study in Scientific Reports how climate change is facilitating the spread of the virus. If it only progresses moderately – as scientists are currently observing – the risk of infection will continue to increase in many regions of the world through the end of the 21st century. If climate change continues unchecked, the virus could even spread to southern Europe and the United States.