Climate-sensitive zoonotic diseases transmissible by companion animals: A scoping review protocol

PLOS One | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0325568 June 10, 2025 6 / 8 Status and timeline We are currently undergoing Level 1 screening for both reviews and anticipate that these reviews will be completed by the end of 2025. Discussion Climate change is a complex issue affecting global health through various pathways, including its impact on zoonotic diseases [2,9]. Given the projected changes in global temperatures and other meteorological factors, it is crucial to gain a better understanding of how current and projected meteorological factors affect the epidemiology of zoonotic diseases that can be transmitted by companion animals. The proposed scoping reviews aim to synthesize the available evidence for climate-sensitive zoonotic diseases in dogs, cats, and human populations worldwide, particularly 1) spatiotemporal pat- terns, 2) meteorological risk factors, and 3) future disease trends due to climate change. The findings will enrich the evi- dence on companion animal zoonotic diseases worldwide, inform future research directions, and highlight considerations for health system planning in the context of climate change. Limitations There are several limitations that should be acknowledged. First, only articles published in the English language will be included. Second, despite consulting Weese and Fulford (2011) [1] to identify a list of companion animal zoonotic dis- eases, the search strategy did not include keywords for every zoonotic pathogen that can be transmitted between dogs,

cats, and humans. Third, despite a systematic search of academic literature, relevant sources may be unintentionally omitted such that not all available literature on climate-sensitive companion animal zoonotic diseases will be captured. Supporting information S1 File. Appendix 1: Proposed keywords and controlled vocabulary for the key concepts of meteorological fac- tors, companion animals, human health, and companion animal zoonotic diseases. (DOCX) S2 File. Appendix II Search terms for MEDLINE via OVID, executed February 1, 2024. (DOCX) S3 File. Appendix III: Proposed data extraction form. (DOCX) S1 Data. PRISMA-P-checklist - PloS One – Protocol. (DOCX) Acknowledgments Thank you to Jacqueline Kreller-Vanderkooy at the University of Guelph for her contributions to the development of the search strategy for this protocol. Author contributions Conceptualization: Lauren E. Grant. Funding acquisition: Lauren E. Grant. Methodology: Samantha Hobson, John Mallare, Heather Grieve, J. Scott Weese, Lauren E. Grant.