<
https://theconversation.com/humans-infecting-animals-infecting-humans-from-covid-19-to-bird-flu-preventing-pandemics-requires-protecting-all-species-212679>
"When the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11,
2020, humans had been the only species with reported cases of the disease.
While early genetic analyses pointed to horseshoe bats as the evolutionary
hosts of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, no reports had yet
surfaced indicating it could be transmitted from humans to other animal
species.
Less than two weeks later, a report from Belgium marked the first infection in
a domestic cat – presumably by its owner. Summer 2020 saw news of COVID-19
outbreaks and subsequent cullings in mink farms across Europe and fears of
similar calls for culling in North America. Humans and other animals on and
around mink farms tested positive, raising questions about the potential for a
secondary wildlife reservoir of COVID-19. That is, the virus could infect and
establish a transmission cycle in a different species than the one in which it
originated.
Researchers have documented this phenomenon of human-to-animal transmission,
colloquially referred to as spillback or reverse zoonotic transmission, in both
domestic and wild animals. Wildlife may be infected either directly from humans
or indirectly from domestic animals infected by humans. This stepping-stone
effect provides new opportunities for pathogens to evolve and can radically
change how they spread, as seen with influenza and tuberculosis.
For example, spillback has been a long-standing threat to endangered great
apes, even among populations with infrequent human contact. The chimpanzees of
Gombe National Park, made famous by Jane Goodall’s work, have suffered
outbreaks of measles and other respiratory diseases likely resulting from
environmental persistence of pathogens spread by people living nearby or by
ecotourists.
We are researchers who study the mechanisms driving cross-species disease
transmission and how disease affects both wildlife conservation and people.
Emerging outbreaks have underscored the importance of understanding how threats
to wildlife health shape the emergence and spread of zoonotic pathogens. Our
research suggests that looking at historical outbreaks can help predict and
prevent the next pandemic."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
