Table 2. Historical time periods, associated ecological characteristics, and VBDs.

The unique ecological and human social context of time periods throughout history have set the stage for specific vector-borne diseases to emerge.

	Years	Overview	Ecological Characteristics	Prominent VBDs
Paleolithic Era	2.6 million years ago → 10,000 BCE	Nomadic and semi-nomadic hunter-gatherer society; foraging for wild plants or pursuing wild animals	Hypothesized early spillover of parasites from primates to humans; diseases present in animal reservoirs and human populations; incomplete immunity makes previously infected people susceptible to future infection	Malaria
Neolithic Revolution	10,000 BCE → 4,000 BCE	Transition from traditional hunter-gatherer lifestyles to settlement-based agricultural lifestyles	VBD transmission rates surge due to increased contact between humans and animals in domestic settings	Malaria
Age of Empires	4,000 BCE → 400 CE	Complex societies and prominent empires in many geographic areas, such as in Mesopotamia, Mediterranean, Africa, and Asia	Mercantile international trade and war scale up societal contact, leading to VBD spread among distinct populations	Trypanosomiasis,Malaria
Middle Ages	400 CE → 1400s CE	Formation of new kingdoms and changes in power structure; large-scale deurbanization	Population decline followed by growth in Europe; large-scale movements of tribes and agricultural/land use modification lead to new human-environment interactions	Plague, Trypanosomiasis
Atlantic Empires	1400s CE → 1750s CE	Old World interacts with New World via colonialism and exploration	Contact between different populations facilitates exchange of crops, livestock, and diseases	Yellow Fever, Malaria
Industrial Revolution	1750s CE → 1900s CE	Transition to intensive manufacturing processes; shift from agriculture to industry	Worldwide population growth; highly urbanized environments increase close proximity transmission of VBDs	Yellow Fever, Malaria
Modern Context	1900s CE → Present	Advent of novel technologies; increasingly globalized world	Tourism, global travel, and economic industries affected by VBDs; political uprising; poverty traps	Dengue, Zika, Yellow Fever, Malaria