Illnesses transmitted from animals to humans could kill 12 times as many people in 2050 than they did in 2020, researchers have warned.
Epidemics caused by zoonotic diseases – also known as spillovers – could be more frequent in the future due to climate change and deforestation, experts from US biotech company Ginkgo Bioworks warned.
They called for “urgent action” to address the large risk to global health caused by such diseases.
The database covered epidemics reported by the World Health Organisation (WHO), outbreaks occurring since 1963 that killed 50 or more people and historically significant events including the flu pandemics of 1918 and 1957.
Researchers also suggested the figures were likely to be an underestimate due to the strict inclusion criteria for the pathogens in the analysis and the exclusion of Covid-19.
The team added that “urgent action is needed to address a large and growing risk to global health”.
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