Systematics and emerging infectious diseases: from management to solution.

Area of Science:

• * Systematic biology and its role in understanding infectious diseases.

Background:

• * The emergence of new infectious diseases is a significant global health crisis.
• * This crisis is exacerbated by incomplete taxonomic knowledge of parasites and pathogens.
• * Current technological limitations hinder the creation of comprehensive global species inventories.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To highlight the critical need for taxonomic inventories of parasites and pathogens.
• * To explore how recent technological advancements can facilitate global species identification.
• * To emphasize the potential of phylogenetics and digital data in predicting disease transmission.

Main Methods:

• * Review of technological advancements in species identification and inventory.
• * Application of phylogenetic principles to understand pathogen transmission dynamics.
• * Leveraging of publicly available digital data on the internet.

Main Results:

• * Technological progress offers a feasible path toward timely and cost-effective global species inventories.
• * Phylogenetics provides a framework for predictive modeling of pathogen transmission.
• * Digital data availability is increasing.

Conclusions:

• * Systematic biology is essential for proactive strategies against emerging parasitic and infectious diseases.
• * Integrating taxonomic data with phylogenetic and digital resources can enhance disease surveillance and response.
• * A proactive approach, informed by systematic biology, is crucial for managing future disease outbreaks.