Dr. Bireshwar Bera is an Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of Zoology at St. Joseph’s College, Darjeeling, West Bengal, where he also serves as Head of the Department. He holds a Ph.D. in Zoology and has extensive experience in teaching, research, academic administration, and scientific peer review.
His research interests encompass zoology, parasitology, aquatic ecology, biodiversity conservation, freshwater ecosystems, aquaculture, environmental monitoring, and vector-borne diseases. His research contributions include studies on parasite metabolism, wetland and lake ecology, avifaunal diversity, water quality management, and sustainable aquatic resource management. He has authored numerous research articles and scholarly contributions across diverse areas of biological and environmental sciences.

Dr. Bera has undertaken research projects on environmental monitoring, wetland management, and parasite biology. He also serves as a reviewer for several national and international scientific journals and contributes to academic activities as an invited speaker, resource person, and doctoral thesis examiner. His professional commitments reflect a strong interest in interdisciplinary research, biodiversity conservation, environmental sustainability, and the advancement of zoological sciences.

Climate Change and Infectious Diseases: From Shifting Transmission to Climate-Ready Surveillance, Diagnostics and One Health Action

Abstract: Climate change is reshaping the conditions under which pathogens, vectors, hosts and health systems interact. This narrative review synthesizes evidence on how warming, altered precipitation, drought, flooding and coastal change influence infectious-disease risk, focusing on vector-borne, water- and food-borne, zoonotic and antimicrobial-resistant infections. Mechanisms include shifts in pathogen and vector thermal performance, seasonality and geographic suitability; contamination of water and food systems; changes in host–human contact and displacement; and disruption of prevention, diagnosis and care. Evidence supports climate-sensitive changes in transmission, but effects are disease- and place-specific, often nonlinear, and mediated by urbanization, land use, mobility, immunity, sanitation, socioeconomic vulnerability and control programmes. The widely cited estimate that 58% of 375 human pathogenic diseases have at some point been aggravated by climate hazards counts published empirical examples; it is not an attributable fraction of infections or deaths. Recent indicators likewise show rising climate-defined dengue suitability alongside geographically mixed malaria suitability, underscoring why suitability must not be conflated with incidence. In South and Southeast Asia, monsoon variability, extreme heat, flooding and water insecurity make locally calibrated surveillance especially important. Effective early warning must link meteorological and hydrological forecasts with vector, animal, environmental and clinical data, rapid diagnostics and defined response actions, including water, sanitation and hygiene measures, vector control, vaccination were indicated and antimicrobial stewardship. Climate–AMR research is emerging, with causality and the dominant pathways not yet settled; One Health monitoring is therefore essential. Market forecasts signal demand for diagnostics but use non-equivalent commercial scopes and do not quantify climate-attributable demand. Mitigation, equitable adaptation and resilient health systems are complementary strategies to reduce avoidable infection risk.

Keywords: Climate change; Infectious diseases; Vector-borne diseases; Climate-informed surveillance; One Health