Domestic Animals as Potential Reservoirs of Zoonotic Viral Diseases.

Zoonoses are diseases and infections naturally transmitted between humans and vertebrate animals. Over the years, zoonoses have become increasingly significant threats to global health. They form the dominant group of diseases among the emerging infectious diseases (EID) and currently account for 73% of EID. Approximately 25% of zoonoses originate in domestic animals. The etiological agents of zoonoses include different pathogens, with viruses accounting for approximately 30% of all zoonotic infections. Zoonotic diseases can be transmitted directly or indirectly, by contact, via aerosols, through a vector, or vertically in utero. Zoonotic diseases are found in every continent except Antarctica. Numerous factors associated with the pathogen, human activities, and the environment play significant roles in the transmission and emergence of zoonotic diseases. Effective response and control of zoonotic diseases call for multiple-sector involvement and collaboration according to the One Health concept.

Animal Models, Zoonotic Reservoirs, and Cross-Species Transmission of Emerging Human-Infecting Coronaviruses.

Over the past three decades, coronavirus (CoV) diseases have impacted humans more than any other emerging infectious disease. The recent emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019), has resulted in huge economic disruptions and loss of human lives. The SARS-CoV-2 genome was found to mutate more rapidly due to sustained transmission in humans and potentially animals, resulting in variants of concern (VOCs) that threaten global human health. However, the primary difficulties are filling in the current knowledge gaps in terms of the origin and modalities of emergence for these viruses. Because many CoVs threatening human health are suspected to have a zoonotic origin, identifying the animal hosts implicated in the spillover or spillback events would be beneficial for current pandemic management and to prevent future outbreaks. In this review, wesummarize the animal models, zoonotic reservoirs, and cross-species transmission of the emerging human CoVs. Finally, we comment on potential sources of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron VOCs and the new SARS-CoV-2 recombinants currently under investigation.

Wildlife susceptibility to infectious diseases at global scales.

Disease transmission prediction across wildlife is crucial for risk assessment of emerging infectious diseases. Susceptibility of host species to pathogens is influenced by the geographic, environmental, and phylogenetic context of the specific system under study. We used machine learning to analyze how such variables influence pathogen incidence for multihost pathogen assemblages, including one of direct transmission (coronaviruses and bats) and two vector-borne systems (West Nile Virus [WNV] and birds, and malaria and birds). Here we show that this methodology is able to provide reliable global spatial susceptibility predictions for the studied host-pathogen systems, even when using a small amount of incidence information (i.e., [Formula: see text] of information in a database). We found that avian malaria was mostly affected by environmental factors and by an interaction between phylogeny and geography, and WNV susceptibility was mostly influenced by phylogeny and by the interaction between geographic and environmental distances, whereas coronavirus susceptibility was mostly affected by geography. This approach will help to direct surveillance and field efforts providing cost-effective decisions on where to invest limited resources.

Mitigating the Impact of Emerging Animal Infectious Disease Threats: First Emerging Animal Infectious Diseases Conference (EAIDC) Report.

From 29 November to 1 December 2021, an "emerging animal infectious disease conference (EAIDC)" was held at the Pennsylvania State University. This conference brought together distinguished thought leaders in animal health, veterinary diagnostics, epidemiology and disease surveillance, and agricultural economics. The conference's primary objective was to review the lessons learned from past experiences in dealing with high-consequence animal infectious diseases to inform an action plan to prepare for future epizootics and panzootics. Invited speakers and panel members comprised world-leading experts in animal infectious diseases from federal state agencies, academia, professional societies, and the private sector. The conference concluded that the biosecurity of livestock operations is critical for minimizing the devastating impact of emerging animal infectious diseases. The panel also highlighted the need to develop and benchmark cutting-edge diagnostics for rapidly detecting pathogens in clinical samples and the environment. Developing next-generation pathogen agnostic diagnostics will help detect variants of known pathogens and unknown novel pathogens. The conference also highlighted the importance of the One Health approach in dealing with emerging animal and human infectious diseases. The recommendations of the conference may be used to inform policy discussions focused on developing strategies for monitoring and preventing emerging infectious disease threats to the livestock industry.

Ecological super-spreaders drive host-range oscillations: Omicron and risk space for emerging infectious disease.

The unusual genetic diversity of the Omicron strain has led to speculation about its origin. The mathematical modelling platform developed for the Stockholm Paradigm (SP) indicates strongly that it has retro-colonized humans from an unidentified nonhuman mammal, likely originally infected by humans. The relationship between Omicron and all other SARS-CoV-2 variants indicates oscillations among hosts, a core part of the SP. Such oscillations result from the emergence of novel variants following colonization of new hosts, replenishing and expanding the risk space for disease emergence. The SP predicts that pathogens colonize new hosts using pre-existing capacities. Those events are thus predictable to a certain extent. Novel variants emerge after a colonization and are not predictable. This makes it imperative to take proactive measures for anticipating emerging infectious diseases (EID) and mitigating their impact. The SP suggests a policy protocol, DAMA, to accomplish this goal. DAMA comprises: DOCUMENT to detect pathogens before they emerge in new places or colonize new hosts; ASSESS to determine risk; MONITOR to detect changes in pathogen populations that increase the risk of outbreaks and ACT to prevent outbreaks when possible and minimize their impact when they occur.

Emerging and endemic zoonotic diseases: surveillance and diagnostics.

In this paper, the authors: (a) list methods used to diagnose zoonotic diseases in humans and animals; (b) identify between-species differences in diagnostic approaches, providing commentary on the benefits that might arise from simultaneous interpretation of data from human and animal health surveillance systems; and (c) reiterate the importance of using species-specific, validated diagnostic tests for surveillance and disease outbreak investigations. Emerging and endemic zoonotic diseases are likely to provide a continued threat to global health in the short- to medium-term future. A good deal of knowledge about the drivers of infectious disease emergence has been developed based on numerous examples from the recent past. Sharing of diagnostic resources across human and animal health sectors, sharing of human and animal health surveillance data, development of skills in the interpretation of that data and awareness of issues related to the validation and interpretation of diagnostic test data are necessary prerequisites for an effective endemic disease surveillance system. A good understanding of the epidemiological patterns of endemic disease will allow human and animal health professionals be able to more quickly detect the presence of emerging disease threats.

Après avoir répertorié les méthodes utilisées pour diagnostiquer les maladies zoonotiques chez l'homme comme chez les animaux, les auteurs définissent les différentes approches diagnostiques suivant les espèces considérées et commentent les avantages qui pourraient découler d'une interprétation simultanée des données par les systèmes de surveillance en santé animale et en santé publique ; il réitèrent ensuite l'importance de recourir à des tests diagnostiques validés et spécifiques de l'espèce considérée dans le cadre de la surveillance et des enquêtes suite à l'apparition d'un foyer. Les maladies zoonotiques émergentes et endémiques représentent potentiellement une menace continue pour la santé mondiale à court et à moyen terme. Les facteurs favorisant l'émergence des maladies infectieuses sont désormais beaucoup mieux connus grâce aux enseignements tirés de nombreux exemples récents. Le partage des ressources diagnostiques entre les secteurs de la santé humaine et animale, les échanges des données de la surveillance sanitaire réunies par les deux secteurs, le renforcement des compétences en matière d'interprétation des données et la sensibilisation aux problématiques de la validation et de l'interprétation des données générées par les tests de diagnostic sont des conditions préalables à la mise en place d'un système efficace de surveillance des maladies endémiques. Une bonne compréhension des profils épidémiologiques des maladies endémiques permettra aux professionnels de la santé humaine et animale de détecter plus rapidement la présence de menaces émergentes.

Los autores proceden aquí a: a) relacionar los métodos empleados para diagnosticar enfermedades zoonóticas en personas y animales; b) señalar las diferencias que existen entre los distintos planteamientos de diagnóstico según la especie de que se trate, comentando asimismo las ventajas que podrían derivarse de la interpretación simultánea de los datos de los sistemas de vigilancia sanitaria y de los de vigilancia zoosanitaria; y c) reiterar la importancia que reviste el uso de pruebas de diagnóstico no solo validadas, sino también adaptadas específicamente a cada especie, para las labores de vigilancia y estudio de brotes. Lo más probable es que a corto y medio plazo las enfermedades zoonóticas, ya sean emergentes o endémicas, sigan constituyendo una amenaza para la salud mundial. Gracias a numerosos ejemplos del pasado reciente se ha ido constituyendo un buen conocimiento de los factores que propician la aparición de enfermedades infecciosas. Para disponer de un eficaz sistema de vigilancia de enfermedades endémicas hay una serie de requisitos previos indispensables: utilización compartida de los recursos de diagnóstico entre los sectores de la salud humana y la sanidad animal; intercambio de los datos de vigilancia sanitaria y de vigilancia zoosanitaria; adquisición de competencias para interpretar esos datos; y buen conocimiento de las cuestiones ligadas a la validación de pruebas de diagnóstico y a la interpretación de los datos que arrojan. Si los profesionales de la salud humana y la sanidad animal conocen debidamente los patrones epidemiológicos de las enfermedades endémicas, estarán en condiciones de detectar con más celeridad la presencia de enfermedades emergentes que constituyan una amenaza.

Zooanthroponotic potential of SARS-CoV-2 and implications of reintroduction into human populations.

The emergence of alternate variants of SARS-CoV-2 due to ongoing adaptations in humans and following human-to-animal transmission has raised concern over the efficacy of vaccines against new variants. We describe human-to-animal transmission (zooanthroponosis) of SARS-CoV-2 and its implications for faunal virus persistence and vaccine-mediated immunity.

The Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 within the Dog Population in Croatia: Host Factors and Clinical Outcome.

Over a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, there is growing evidence that SARS-CoV-2 infections among dogs are more common than previously thought. In this study, the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies was investigated in two dog populations. The first group was comprised of 1069 dogs admitted to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital for any given reason. The second group included dogs that shared households with confirmed COVID-19 cases in humans. This study group numbered 78 dogs. In COVID-19 infected households, 43.9% tested ELISA positive, and neutralising antibodies were detected in 25.64% of dogs. Those data are comparable with the secondary attack rate in the human population. With 14.69% of dogs in the general population testing ELISA positive, there was a surge of SARS-CoV-2 infections within the dog population amid the second wave of the pandemic. Noticeably seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in the dog and the human population did not differ at the end of the study period. Male sex, breed and age were identified as significant risk factors. This study gives strong evidence that while acute dog infections are mostly asymptomatic, they can pose a significant risk to dog health. Due to the retrospective nature of this study, samples for viral isolation and PCR were unavailable. Still, seropositive dogs had a 1.97 times greater risk for developing central nervous symptoms.

Lumpy skin disease, an emerging transboundary viral disease: A review.

Lumpy skin disease is an emerging bovine viral disease, which is endemic in most African countries and some Middle East ones, and the elevated risk of the spread of disease into the rest of Asia and Europe should be considered. The recent rapid spread of disease in currently disease-free countries indicates the importance of understanding the limitations and routes of distribution. The causative agent, Capripoxvirus, can also induce sheeppox and goatpox. The economic significance of these diseases is of great concern, given that they threaten international trade and could be used as economic bioterrorism agents. The distribution of capripoxviruses seems to be expanding due to limited access to effective vaccines and poverty within farming communities. This is largely due to the economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the imposition of crippling sanctions in endemic regions, as well as an increase in the legal and illegal trade of live animals and animal products, and also global climate change. The present review is designed to provide existing information on the various aspects of the disease such as its clinicopathology, transmission, epidemiology, diagnosis, prevention and control measures, and the potential role of wildlife in the further spread of disease.

Common ground: The foundation of interdisciplinary research on bat disease emergence.

Human perturbation of natural systems is accelerating the emergence of infectious diseases, mandating integration of disease and ecological research. Bats have been associated with recent zoonoses, but our bibliometric analysis of coauthor relationships identified a separation of bat ecologists and infectious disease researchers with few cross-disciplinary relationships. Of 5,645 papers, true interdisciplinary collaborations occurred primarily in research focused on White Nose Syndrome (WNS). This finding is important because it illustrates how research with outcomes favoring both bat conservation and disease mitigation promotes domain integration and network connectivity. We advocate for increased engagement between ecology and infectious researchers to address such common causes and suggest that efforts focus on leveraging existing activities, building interdisciplinary projects, and networking individuals and networks to integrate domains and coordinate resources. We provide specific opportunities for pursuing these strategies through the Bat One Health Research Network (BOHRN).

A transmissible cancer shifts from emergence to endemism in Tasmanian devils.

Emerging infectious diseases pose one of the greatest threats to human health and biodiversity. Phylodynamics is often used to infer epidemiological parameters essential for guiding intervention strategies for human viruses such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-Cov-2). Here, we applied phylodynamics to elucidate the epidemiological dynamics of Tasmanian devil facial tumor disease (DFTD), a fatal, transmissible cancer with a genome thousands of times larger than that of any virus. Despite prior predictions of devil extinction, transmission rates have declined precipitously from ~3.5 secondary infections per infected individual to ~1 at present. Thus, DFTD appears to be transitioning from emergence to endemism, lending hope for the continued survival of the endangered Tasmanian devil. More generally, our study demonstrates a new phylodynamic analytical framework that can be applied to virtually any pathogen.

Bats in ecosystems and their Wide spectrum of viral infectious potential threats: SARS-CoV-2 and other emerging viruses.

Bats have populated earth for approximately 52 million years, serving as natural reservoirs for a variety of viruses through the course of evolution. Transmission of highly pathogenic viruses from bats has been suspected or linked to a spectrum of potential emerging infectious diseases in humans and animals worldwide. Examples of such viruses include Marburg, Ebolavirus, Nipah, Hendra, Influenza A, Dengue, Equine Encephalitis viruses, Lyssaviruses, Madariaga and Coronaviruses, involving the now pandemic Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Herein, we provide a narrative review focused in selected emerging viral infectious diseases that have been reported from bats.

Development of a TaqMan-probe-based multiplex real-time PCR for the simultaneous detection of emerging and reemerging swine coronaviruses.

With the outbreak of the recent severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in 2019, coronaviruses have become a global research hotspot in the field of virology. Coronaviruses mainly cause respiratory and digestive tract diseases, several coronaviruses are responsible for porcine diarrhea, such as porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), porcine deltacoronavirus (PDCoV), and emerging swine acute diarrhea syndrome coronavirus (SADS-CoV). Those viruses have caused huge economic losses and are considered as potential public health threats. Porcine torovirus (PToV) and coronaviruses, sharing similar genomic structure and replication strategy, belong to the same order Nidovirales. Here, we developed a multiplex TaqMan-probe-based real-time PCR for the simultaneous detection of PEDV, PDCoV, PToV, and SADS-CoV for the first time. Specific primers and TaqMan fluorescent probes were designed targeting the ORF1a region of PDEV, PToV, and SADS-CoV and the ORF1b region of PDCoV. The method showed high sensitivity and specificity, with a detection limit of 1 × 102 copies/µL for each pathogen. A total of 101 clinical swine samples with signs of diarrhea were analyzed using this method, and the result showed good consistency with conventional reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR). This method improves the efficiency for surveillance of these emerging and reemerging swine enteric viruses and can help reduce economic losses to the pig industry, which also benefits animal and public health.

Emerging novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV)-current scenario, evolutionary perspective based on genome analysis and recent developments.

Coronaviruses are the well-known cause of severe respiratory, enteric and systemic infections in a wide range of hosts including man, mammals, fish, and avian. The scientific interest on coronaviruses increased after the emergence of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) outbreaks in 2002-2003 followed by Middle East Respiratory Syndrome CoV (MERS-CoV). This decade's first CoV, named 2019-nCoV, emerged from Wuhan, China, and declared as 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern' on January 30th, 2020 by the World Health Organization (WHO). As on February 4, 2020, 425 deaths reported in China only and one death outside China (Philippines). In a short span of time, the virus spread has been noted in 24 countries. The zoonotic transmission (animal-to-human) is suspected as the route of disease origin. The genetic analyses predict bats as the most probable source of 2019-nCoV though further investigations needed to confirm the origin of the novel virus. The ongoing nCoV outbreak highlights the hidden wild animal reservoir of the deadly viruses and possible threat of spillover zoonoses as well. The successful virus isolation attempts have made doors open for developing better diagnostics and effective vaccines helping in combating the spread of the virus to newer areas.