For decades, researchers have debated whether climate change has an adverse impact on diseases, especially infectious diseases. They have identified a strong relationship between climate variables and vector’s growth, mortality rate, reproduction, and spatiotemporal distribution. Epidemiological data further indicates the emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases post every single extreme weather event. Based on studies conducted mostly between 1990-2018, three aspects that resemble the impact of climate change impact on diseases are: (a) emergence and re-emergence of vector-borne diseases, (b) impact of extreme weather events, and (c) social upliftment with education and adaptation. This review mainly examines and discusses the impact of climate change based on scientific evidences in published literature. Humans are highly vulnerable to diseases and other post-catastrophic effects of extreme events, as evidenced in literature. It is high time that human beings understand the adverse impacts of climate change and take proper and sustainable control measures. There is also the important requirement for allocation of effective technologies, maintenance of healthy lifestyles, and public education.

In the present study, bifunctional silica-coated Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺,Co²⁺ spherical-shaped submicron composite particles were successfully prepared using a facile urea-assisted homogenous precipitation method. Synthesized Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺,Co²⁺ phosphor composites showed both ferromagnetic behaviour and strong visible red luminescence emission. The surface of the Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺,Co²⁺ phosphor composites was modified with a thin silica layer to enhance the luminescent properties and obtain higher biocompatibility of the samples. The composite particles with silica coatings resulted in a small decrease in the viability of L-929 fibroblastic cells at concentrations lower than 25 ppm and allowed cell imaging via internalization and wide distribution into the cells. Overall, these synthesized novel SiO₂@Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺,Co²⁺ core–shell phosphor composites with both magnetic and luminescent properties have potential biomedical applications, including bioimaging and diagnosis, and can be also potentially used as MRI contrast agents.

In the present study, nearly-uniform spherical-shaped dysprosium-doped cubic yttrium-oxide nanoparticles were prepared by using the urea homogeneous precipitation method. X-ray diffraction patterns of synthesized particles confirmed the formation of a pure cubic phase of Y₂O₃. The morphology and the elemental analysis measurements were carried out using a transmission electron microscope and a field-emission scanning electron microscope. The particles were observed to have average sizes of around 110 nm. In order to select the optimum concentration of the Dy³⁺ dopant in the samples, we measured the strongest yellow emission peak intensity due to the strong ⁴F_9/2-⁶H_13/2 transition (573 nm) as a function of the Dy-ion dopant concentration under a constant 349 nm excitation. The PL results showed that the strongest yellow emission at 573 nm occurred when the dopant concentration was about 1% in mol equivalent. Y₂O₃:Dy³⁺ phosphor can be used for applications in security printing, biolabel technology, lamps for illumination purposes, etc.

Phosphor particles were introduced as a luminescent medium to improve the overall efficiency of dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). In the preparation process, TiO₂ and phosphor particles were mixed to make photoelectrodes with bilayer (TiO₂/mix), 3-layer (TiO₂/mix/TiO₂) and 4-layer (TiO₂/mix/TiO₂/mix) structures. The cell with the bilayer structure (TiO₂/mix) after treating with TiCl₄ solution showed the highest light-to-electric energy conversion efficiency (8.78%), which was ∼25.8% higher than that of a cell with a pure TiO₂ layer under the same experimental conditions. The improvement in the energy conversion efficiency of DSSCs was attributed to phosphor enhanced incident light-harvesting via up- and down-conversion luminescence processes, resulting in an increase in the photocurrent.