Avian influenza viruses have evolved to infect birds, but the current H5N1 outbreak is also infecting a wide range of mammals. This suggests that it could mutate into forms that threaten humans.
The virus is related to Hendra and Nipah viruses. But we don’t know whether it spreads from human to human.
Sindhi cattle near Amazon rainforest:
flexitarian diets could feed the growing world population without further encroaching onto wild habitat.
Lucas Ninno via GettyImages
Giulia Wegner, University of Oxford and Kris Murray, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
Infectious diseases originating in wild animals are high and may be increasing. This is a sign that ecosystem degradation is undermining the planet’s capacity to sustain human wellbeing.
Many of the metaphors used to discuss monkeypox evoke a criminal or a rebellious child.
(Pixabay)
The metaphors used to characterize monkeypox can contribute to narratives that help sustain racist, colonial, homophobic and other discriminatory attitudes and beliefs.
Domestic cats are allowed to roam can transmit parasites and diseases to humans and wildlife.
(Shutterstock)
Amy Wilson, University of British Columbia and Scott Wilson, University of British Columbia
Allowing cats to roam unsupervised is detrimental to humans, wildlife and the cats themselves. Managing free-roaming cats should consider the risks they pose to other species.
Female white-tailed deer at sunrise.
Gary Gray/Getty Images
A deadly neurological infection, chronic wasting disease, has been detected in deer, elk and moose in 30 states and four Canadian provinces. Human risk is low, but hunters need to take precautions.
Magnified and colourized monkeypox virus particles. Since early May, over 550 confirmed cases of human infection with monkeypox virus have been reported in 30 countries.
(NIAID)
Recent outbreaks have drawn attention to monkeypox. Get answers to common questions about this relative of the smallpox virus, including transmission, symptoms and effectiveness of smallpox vaccine.
Just because many of the children in the current severe hepatitis outbreak were exposed to dogs, doesn’t mean dogs are the cause.
COVID-19 will not be the last infectious disease event of our time. We need to prepare for the next challenge with evidence and knowledge.
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Before COVID-19, clean water, antibiotics and vaccines had made us complacent about infectious disease. Infection control can no longer be taken for granted. We must be prepared for future pandemics.
Xenotransplantation is the transplanting of cells, tissues or organs from animals to humans. Pre-clinical trials of organ transplant from pigs have addressed some of the technical barriers.
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New developments in organ transplants from animals show promise. However, there has been no public engagement about a potential risk. It may streamline a pathway to humans for new zoonotic diseases.
The delay in finding definitive answers to how novel infectious diseases come about is not unusual. Look at what happened to our search for Ebola virus.
A hippopotamus heads back into its enclosure at the Antwerp Zoo.
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COVID-19 has been found in wild, captive and domesticated animals. To understand and combat the disease, a One Health approach that considers human, animal and environmental factors is essential.
Endangered Timneh parrots in illegal trade in West Africa.
Rowan Martin/World Parrot Trust
Social media platforms have enabled wildlife traders to connect as never before. Some operate legally, within the boundaries of international laws. Others are less scrupulous.
There is only ‘one health’ — the health of all living organisms in a global ecosystem that, when rapidly altered and imbalanced, puts us all at risk for future pandemics.
(Canva)
One Health recognizes the interrelations between the health of humans, other animals, and their shared environments. It should be integrated in the international treaty on pandemics.
Trees provide bats with food, and are important parts of the animals’ landscapes.
Dr Mariette Pretorius
Cave-specific conservation and protection actions are essential to protect cave habitats for the continued survival of bats, and ultimately, the well-being of humans.