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May Rapoport’s Rule Apply to Human Associated Pathogens?

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Abstract

Many debates surround the generalization of Rapoport’s rule (i.e., the presence of a positive correlation between range size and latitude); however, little attention has been devoted to this spatial pattern (1) worldwide and (2) for pathogenic microorganisms. In this study, we analyzed this relationship for 290 human pathogenic species dispersed throughout the world to test whether pathogenic organisms with different ecological niches and strategies will show this trend. The midpoint method was used to calculate the correlation between the geographical range size and the latitude applied to different subsets of pathogens, including taxonomic subdivisions (bacteria, viruses, helminths, protozoans, and fungi) and categories based on transmission mode and host specificity. It is assumed that Rapoport’s spatial pattern may exist for human infectious diseases, whatever hemisphere is considered, for 5 to 7 of 8 of the selected groups, depending on the pathogen species included. This is the first study performed to investigate Rapoport’s pattern at a global scale for various pathogenic organisms. We also discuss how three well-known spatial patterns of diversity, i.e., latitudinal gradient, nested species pattern, and Rapoport’s rule, may vary together to produce the actual large-scale geographical distribution of human pathogenic species observed on Earth. These findings have important messages for understanding the distribution and the diffusion of human pathogenic species; however, further studies are needed to investigate the exact underlying mechanisms responsible for those patterns.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Katherine F. Smith for useful criticisms and comments on a previous version of this paper. The manuscript benefited greatly from the comments by two anonymous referees. The CRVOI (Centre for Scientific Research and Intelligence on Emerging Infectious Diseases in the Indian Ocean), the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique and the French School of Public Health supported this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CRVOI, Centre de Veille et de Recherche sur les maladies émergentes dans l’Océan Indien, 2 rue Maxime Rivière, 97490, Ste Clotilde, Réunion, France

    Vanina Guernier

  2. UMR 2724 IRD-CNRS- Montpellier University, Génétique et Évolution des Maladies Infectieuses, 911 avenue Agropolis, BP 64501, 34394, Montpellier cedex 05, France

    Jean-François Guégan

  3. French School of Public Health, Interdisciplinary Center on Globalization and Infectious Diseases, 911 avenue Agropolis, BP 64501, 34394, Montpellier cedex 05, France

    Jean-François Guégan

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  1. Vanina Guernier
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Correspondence to Vanina Guernier.

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Guernier, V., Guégan, JF. May Rapoport’s Rule Apply to Human Associated Pathogens?. EcoHealth 6, 509–521 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-010-0290-5

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