One Health News

Most people are aware of the existence of zoonoses - those few diseases that pets can pass onto people: examples include rabies, ringworm, Toxoplasmosis and a number of bacterial infections which can be picked up by hand-to-mouth contact, or by contamination of a human skin wound. Simple attention to prevention, including vaccination and basic hygiene, are usually sufficient to keep these potential problems under control.

Now is the time for academic institutions to step forward in leading new One Health initiatives to create impactful, relevant research-driven solutions and train the next generation of innovative leaders. One Health concepts are ideally suited to provide robust, system-wide health-related solutions that the global society will need and expect. There is an enormous unrealized potential for all schools/colleges on a campus or amongst campuses to collaborate and leverage their strengths to solve many of society’s most important One Health issues such as prevention and treatment of obesity in humans and animals, infectious and zoonotic diseases that threaten global peace and security, health care costs and the need to adopt wellness programs, and safe and nutritious food and water for the world’s growing population—just to name a few.

In a Memorandum of Understanding, FAO, OIE and WHO agreed to strengthen their long-standing partnership, with a  focus on tackling antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Report  

Cornell-Sathguru Foundation for Development (CSFD), with the support of the Indian Federation of Animal Health Companies (INFAH)  and the University of Hyderabad, hosted the first One Health Summit in India.

Baron Soulsby of Swaffham (Lord Soulsby), who died in May 2017, was a pioneer and champion of the One Health concept who sought to inspire colleagues and students to view animal and human medicine as one continuous health-related tapestry.

One Health is a nonpartisan issue. Governments embracing and implementing it in all countries will be beneficial to the entire world.

3 November is the official observance date of the annual global One Health Day.  Launched in April 2016 by three leading international One Health groups, the One Health Commission, the One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono Team, and the One Health Platform Foundation, One Health Day raises awareness about the One Health approach to complex health problems involving people, animals, and the environment. One Health Day has grown into a sustainable platform for One Health supporters around the world to educate about One Health and One Health issues in their locals.   

A TEDxGatewayArch talk on wellness suggests we’re all in this together. “We people, the 7.6 billion of us, need to come to grips with the realization that human health is dependent upon the environmental health and animal health,” Deem says. “We’re the ones who make the changes on this planet.”

On March 22, 2018, Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) and Senator Todd Young (R-IN) introduced a bi-partisan bill, S.2615 “Advancing Emergency Preparedness Through One Health Act of 2018” which has been referred to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) for their review.

S.2615 will improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the U.S. Government’s response to (disease) emergencies by requiring the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture (USDA) to do more than justcoordinate but actively collaborate among themselves and other relevant Departments and Agencies to develop and implement a federal One Health Framework. Human health, animal health and environmental health are inextricably linked and a One Health approach is the collaborative effort of multiple disciplines working locally, nationally and globally to address issues of mutual concern, such as: emergency preparedness for disease outbreaks.

The One Health Framework in S.2615 would:

• Advance workforce development related to prevention of and response to disease outbreaks in animals and humans.
• Improve coordination between federal agencies who study human and animal health and the environment.
• Advance scientific understanding of the connections between human, animal, and environmental health.

Review S. 2615  https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/2615/text?q=%7B%22search%22:%22tina+smith%22%7D&r=18  

See a description of the Bill

On March 7-8, a two-day Transatlantic Taskforce on Antimicrobial Resistance (TATFAR) meeting was held in Atlanta. TATFAR members convened to strengthen collaboration against growing resistance to life-saving antimicrobial drugs. The meeting included government agency representatives from Canada, the European Union, Norway, and the United States, along with other leading experts on antimicrobial resistance (AMR). 

'Flipped' classroom One Health MOOC: The One Health Unit, Institute of Global Health (Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva) in collaboration with Professor Jakob Zinsstag, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, has just published a description of the first global 'flipped'  classroom in One Health.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is sadly not a new threat, and despite Alexander Fleming’s warnings about resistant bacteria rising up because of the frequent and misuse of antibiotics,¹ only fairly recently have individuals truly started to pay attention. Not only is there a growing threat of resistant bacteria, but the development of new antibiotics has been woefully insufficient. A recent report found that “of the drugs in development, only 12 have the potential to address the most critical Gram-negative pathogens on the World Health Organization’s antibiotic-resistant priority pathogens list: carbapenem-resistant Enterobactericaeae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Acinetobacter baumanii.

Feral rhesus macaques living in a Florida state park can transmit herpes B virus, which is potentially deadly in humans.

Transmission is a low-incidence, high-consequence risk, according to an article in the February issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases.

Today, the Government of Tanzania and partners launched the One Health Coordination Desk and the National One Health Strategic Plan, as an important milestone towards addressing emerging health challenges at the animal-environment-human interface. Establishment of the One Health Coordination Desk and other elements of the National One Health Platform, underscores national commitment to strengthen mechanisms for prevention, detection and response to outbreaks. This is critical as the country embarks on building core capacities for preparedness and response to public health events under the International Health Regulations.

If your pet ventures outside, even for a short time each day, then your furry friend is at risk for a zoonotic disease that has the potential to kill you both.

Abby Beckley thought her left eye was irritated because of a stray eyelash. She rubbed her eye, flushed it with water, but when the discomfort remained, she peered into the mirror. She thought she saw a piece of clear fuzz. She pinched it with her fingers and pulled it out.

Fears of spreading yellow fever are behind the illegal killing of scores of monkeys in Rio de Janeiro, complicating efforts to fight the virus, authorities say.

The world must ramp up efforts to prevent huge infectious disease outbreaks - such as flu strains that can jump from animals to humans - which could kill millions of people, the chief of the U.N.’s disaster risk agency said on Saturday.

Another influenza pandemic is inevitable. In this interconnected world, the next global flu outbreak is a matter of “when” not “if” — with far-reaching consequences. A severe pandemic could result in millions of deaths and destroy over 1% of global GDP.

Bruce Kaplan, DVM, describes some of the achievements of Dr. Thomas Monath who is launching a new vaccine company. The Abstract to this journal article reads: “This review focuses on the immunization of animals as a means of preventing human diseases (zoonoses). Three frameworks for the use of vaccines in this context are described, and examples are provided of successes and failures.

In a new study published in the journal Trends in Ecology and Evolution, researchers revealed that giant sea creatures are swallowing large amounts of microplastic every day, which can pose a threat to their health, and possibly lead to the further decline of their population.

Ebola, H1N1 flu and other outbreaks in the past decade have killed hundreds of thousands of people around the world.

Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Zika emerged from their hiding places just a few years ago, surprising and frustrating public health experts and scientists who could only respond to these infectious diseases, rather than prevent them.

MDPI Veterinary Sciences, Guest Editor: Ricardo Castillo-Neyra, DVM, PhD, MSPH.

This Special Issue is dedicated to discussing recent developments in canine rabies surveillance and exploring new control and elimination strategies for canine rabies. Manuscripts using the One Health approach are especially encouraged. Deadline March 31, 2018 https://goo.gl/tJMB6J

CDC, several states, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) investigated a multistate outbreak of multidrug-resistant Campylobacter infections. Epidemiologic and laboratory evidence indicated that contact with puppies sold through Petland stores was a likely source of this outbreak. This outbreak investigation is over; however, illnesses could continue because people may be unaware of the risk of Campylobacter infections from puppies and dogs. This multi-drug resistant outbreak highlights the need for responsible use of antibiotics in pets.

Therapy animals can be especially helpful with children who lack self-confidence and are struggling in school.

The federal government needs to help public health agencies better pull together data from various sources during a public health emergency, witnesses said at a Senate committee hearing Tuesday.

Researchers hope a new University of Minnesota study will create better brain cancer treatment for both dogs and humans. 

The University of California, Davis' veterinary school is a surprising center for spina bifida and cancer research, thanks to some furry pals. 

Roundworm eggs, shed by stray dogs, can be ingested by children playing outside. The worm’s larvae have been found in the brain, experts say, perhaps impairing development.

Would you eat venison if there was a chance it could slowly eat away at your brain? Chronic wasting disease has infected deer, elk and moose in 24 states and Canada, Norway and South Korea, and a recent study results suggested that humans are not immune to the prion disease. Wildlife officials urge hunters to have game killed in areas where the disease has been found to have their animals tested, but some hunters forgo testing, particularly on animals killed in low-risk areas.

CDC collaborates with countries and other partners to conduct One Health Zoonotic Disease Prioritization workshops to help countries identify their top five zoonotic diseases of greatest national concern. Workshop participation can help strengthen multisectoral collaborations in a country, as participants include a wide-ranging group of partners who work to protect the health of people, animals, or the environment. Prioritizing zoonotic diseases means countries can more efficiently build laboratory capacity, conduct disease surveillance, plan outbreak response and preparedness activities, and create collaborative disease prevention strategies to reduce illness and death in people and animals. Information on these workshops and summary reports can be found on CDC’s One Health website.

Animal and human health are intimately connected – think about avian influenza which is transmitted from birds to humans and the problem of toxoplasmosis being passed from animal faeces to children and adults. The University of Surrey’s School of Veterinary Medicine, has successfully secured an award worth up to €2 million from the European Commission to undertake interdisciplinary research to tackle the growing threat of foodborne zoonoses (infectious diseases transmitted from animals to humans) to the population’s health and the rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).