Unveiling the Chemical Cocktail Conundrum: A Theoretical Exploration of Environmental Pollution and Zoonotic Spillover in Mammals

The rise of zoonotic diseases, such as COVID-19, highlights the urgent need for an integrated One Health approach that bridges animal, human, and environmental health.This paper proposes a theoretical framework to examine the role of environmental contaminants, particularly chemical cocktails, in facilitating zoonotic spillover events in mammals.Our conceptual model focuses on the synergistic effects of chemical pollution and zoonotic pathogens on wildlife and human health, incorporating the following elements: a representative mix of immunotoxic environmental contaminants like perfluorinated substances (PFAS), diverse mammalian species as potential wildlife reservoir hosts, various zoonotic viruses with different transmission dynamics, and the theoretical impact of chemical exposure on wildlife immune systems potentially increasing susceptibility to zoonotic pathogens.We hypothesize that combined stressors, such as chemical exposure and infectious diseases, might drive viral adaptation and enhance zoonotic spillover potential to humans.