To Spread Awareness about Zoonotic Diseases

Zoonotic Disease:

   Disease spread from animals to humans. The major modern diseases such as Ebola virus disease and Salmonellosis are zoonoses. HIV was a zoonotic disease that spread to humans in the early 20th century, although it has now turned into a separate human-only disease. Most strains of influenza that infect humans are human diseases, although many strains of bird flu and swine flu are Zoonoses; These viruses sometimes reunite with human strains of the flu and can cause epidemics such as the Spanish flu of 1918 or the 2009 swine flu. Tenia solium infection is one of the neglected tropical diseases with public health and veterinary concern in endemic areas. Zoonos’ disease can be caused by a range of pathogens such as emerging viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites; Of the 1,415 pathogens known to infect humans, 61% were zoonotic. Most human diseases originated in other animals; However, only diseases that routinely involve non-human to human transmission, such as rabies, are considered to be direct Zoonosis.

  There are different modes of transmission of Zoonos. In direct zoonosis, the disease is transmitted from other animals to humans through direct air (influenza) or bites and saliva (rabies). Conversely, transmission can also occur through an intermediate species (referred to as a vector), which carries the pathogen to the disease without becoming ill. When humans infect other animals, it is called reverse zoonosis or anthroponosis.

  Host genetics play an important role in determining which animal viruses will be able to make copies of themselves in the human body. Dangerous animal viruses are those that require some mutation to replicate themselves in human cells. These viruses are dangerous because the necessary combinations of mutations in the natural reservoir can occur randomly.

  Causes

  Zoonotic transmission can occur in any context in which exposure to or consumption of animals, animal products, or animal derivatives occurs. This can be in a companion (domesticated), economic (farming, trade, butcher, etc.), hunter (hunting, butchering or consuming wild game) or research context.

  Farming, ranching and animal husbandry

  Exposure to farm animals can cause illness in farmers or others who come in contact with infected farm animals. Glanders mainly affect people who work closely with horses and donkeys. Close contact with cattle can cause dermal anthrax infection, while inhalation anthrax infection is more common for workers in slaughterhouses, tanning and wool mills. Close contact with sheep that have recently given birth can lead to chlamydiosis, or enzootic miscarriage in pregnant women, as well as increase the risk of Q fever, toxoplasmosis, and listeriosis in pregnant women or otherwise be immunocompromised. Echinococcosis is caused by a tapeworm that can spread from fecal or wool contaminated food or water from infected sheep. Bird flu is common in chickens. While rare in humans, the main public health concern is that a type of bird flu will reintegrate with the human flu virus and cause a 1918 Spanish flu-like pandemic. In 2017, free range chickens in the UK were ordered to stay inside temporarily due to the risk of bird flu. Cattle are an important repository of cryptosporidiosis and primarily affect people incapacitated in immunity. Recent reports have shown that minks can also be infected.

  Veterinarians are exposed to unique occupational hazards and zoonotic diseases. In the US, studies have highlighted the increased risk of injuries and the lack of veterinary awareness for these hazards. Research has proven the importance of continuing clinical veterinarian education on occupational risks associated with musculoskeletal injuries, animal bites, needle-prick and cuts.A July 2020 report by the United Nations Environment Program states that the increase in the zoonotic epidemic is directly responsible for the anthropogenic destruction of nature and the increasing global demand for meat, and in particular the industrial cultivation of pigs and chickens is a primary risk. Will be the factor. For the outbreak of zoonotic diseases in the future.

Wild animal attacks

 Rabies

 Pets

 Pets can transmit many diseases. Dogs and cats are regularly vaccinated with rabies. Pets can also transmit herpes and giardia, which are endemic in both animal and human populations. Toxoplasmosis is a common infection of cats; It is a mild disease in humans, although it can be dangerous for pregnant women. Dirofilariasis is caused by Dirofilaria imitis through mosquitoes infected by mammals such as dogs and cats. Cat-scratch disease is caused by Bartonella henselae and Bartonella quintana from endemic fleas in cats. Toxocariasis is an infection of humans of any species of roundworm, including species specific for dogs (Toxocara canis) or cats (Toxocara cati). Cryptosporidiosis can spread from domesticated lizards to humans, such as the leopard gecko. Encephalitozoon cuniculi is a microsporidial parasite carried by many mammals, including rabbits, and is an important opportunistic pathogen in people immunized by HIV / AIDS, organ transplantation, or CD4 + T-lymphocyte depletion.

The exhibition Zoonoses outbreaks have been detected by human contact with and contact with other animals in fairs, live animal markets, pet zoos and other settings. In 2005, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released an updated list of recommendations to prevent zoonoses transmission in public settings. The recommendations, developed in conjunction with the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians, include educational responsibilities of venue operators, limiting public animal exposure, and animal care and management.

Hunting and bush meat

COVID-19

HIV

Sars

  Deforestation, loss of Biodiversity and Environmental degradation:

  Zoonotic diseases are increasingly associated with environmental change and human behavior. Disintegration of ancient forests induced by logging, mining, road construction through remote locations, rapid urbanization, and population growth are bringing people into closer contact with species of animals they may have never lived before.  The resulting transmission of the disease from wildlife to humans is now “a hidden cost of human economic development”. The Imassive deforestation, uncontrolled expansion of agriculture, intensive farming, mining and infrastructure development as well as exploitation of wild species have led to the spread of diseases Has created a ‘perfect storm’. From wildlife to people.

  An April 2020 study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society Part B found that the incidence of virus outbreaks from animals to humans could be linked to loss of biodiversity and degradation of the environment, as humans do in agriculture, hunting and resource extraction To encroach further encroach wild lands. They are exposed to pathogens that usually persist in these areas. Such spillover incidents have been tripling every decade since 1980. An August 2020 study published in Nature concluded that anthropogenic destruction of ecosystems aimed at expanding agriculture and human settlements reduces biodiversity and allows for smaller animals such as bats and mice, which are more human. Adapt to the pressures and also lead to the spread of most zoonotic diseases. This in turn can lead to more epidemics.

  In October 2020, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Forum on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services published its report on the ‘era of epidemics’ by 22 experts in various fields, and concluded that anthropogenic destruction of biodiversity paved the way for the epidemic era. , And as a result more than 450,000 viruses can be transmitted from animals – especially birds and mammals – to humans. The increased pressure on the ecosystem is being driven by an “exponential growth” in the consumption and trade of commodities such as meat, palm oil and metals, largely facilitated by developed countries and a growing human population. According to Peter Daszak, the chairman of the group that produced the report, “There is no great mystery about the cause of the Kovid-19 pandemic, or any modern pandemic. The same human activities that harm climate change and biodiversity also drive There are epidemic risks through their effects on our environment.

Some Important Videos to know more about Zoonotic Diseases:-

  1. What are zoonotic diseases? Video: Click Here

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