Emerging infectious diseases, or EIDs, are really important for understanding how living things change over time. They can quickly change and adapt, which makes them interesting to study. In the last 30 years, scientists have found more than 30 new germs that can make people sick. This shows just how much germs can change.
Here's some key information:
Mutation Rates: Viruses can change very fast, sometimes around 1 in a million to 1 in 100 million times with each generation. That's a lot of changes!
Natural Selection: EIDs help us see how natural selection works. About 75% of new infectious diseases come from animals. This means that the animals we share our world with can affect how viruses and germs evolve.
By studying EIDs, we can learn more about how and why these changes happen. This knowledge can help us predict when new outbreaks might happen and guide us in making vaccines to keep people healthy.
Emerging infectious diseases, or EIDs, are really important for understanding how living things change over time. They can quickly change and adapt, which makes them interesting to study. In the last 30 years, scientists have found more than 30 new germs that can make people sick. This shows just how much germs can change.
Here's some key information:
Mutation Rates: Viruses can change very fast, sometimes around 1 in a million to 1 in 100 million times with each generation. That's a lot of changes!
Natural Selection: EIDs help us see how natural selection works. About 75% of new infectious diseases come from animals. This means that the animals we share our world with can affect how viruses and germs evolve.
By studying EIDs, we can learn more about how and why these changes happen. This knowledge can help us predict when new outbreaks might happen and guide us in making vaccines to keep people healthy.