Emerging Zoonotic Diseases in relation to One Health

May 10, 2024

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Emerging Zoonotic Diseases in relation to One Health

Abstract

The entire globe fought against the deadly disease-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus2 (SARS CoV 2) for 2 years. The emergence of this zoonoses in December 2019 from a wet live animal market in Wuhan in China proved the deficit of controlling the severe zoonotic disease globally that took away millions of lives. Humans and animals get infected by some common microbes due to their shared environment. Efforts in one sector cannot prevent or eliminate the problem. Because of the globalisation and interconnectedness in the entire world, a threat against a disease in a particular place is a threat worldwide. More than 75% of emerging disease pathogens are zoonotic. Owing to the spread of emerging and re-emerging diseases in the world for the past three decades, it is crucial for a collaborative approach like the One health programme. One Health is an integrated, unifying approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals, and ecosystems. The various approached closely associated with one health are food safety measures, nutrition, control of zoonoses, management of pollution, and dealing with AMR (anti-microbial resistance).

Introduction

One health is a collaborative, multisectoral and trans disciplinary approach – working at the local, regional, national, and global levels- with the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes recognising the interdependence between humans, animals, plants, and their shared environment (CDC, USA).

The approach involves the brains of various sectors, disciplines and communities at varying levels to join hands to foster well-being and tackle threats to health and ecosystem, along with addressing the need for clean water, energy, safe food, clean air, handling climate change and working for a sustainable development. The One Health concept is particularly relevant for control of zoonoses, food and water safety, nutrition, combating antimicrobial resistance and pollution management. By connecting humans, animals and the environment, One Health can contribute to address the needs of entire disease control from preparedness, response and management, prevention, detection and control and also add to the global security. One health organization has broad mission, vision and initiative for healthy animals, healthy people and healthy environment.

Why One Health is essential?

Many of the same microbes infect animals and humans, as they share the ecosystem they live in. Efforts in one sector cannot prevent or eliminate the problem.
For instance, Rabies in humans is effectively prevented only by targeting the animal source of virus (i.e. by vaccination of dogs).

The diseases of animal origin are multidimensional. Zoonoses might be endemic (leptospirosis, rabies, hydatidosis, taeniasis, KFD) or epidemic-prone like rabies, JE, avian flu, plague, Nipah virus infection, MERS etc. Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, Campylobacter, E. coli like food borne pathogens, PHEIC and pandemics like influenza, SARS, COVID-19, Zika etc. and their etiological factors can be used agents for bioterrorism or biowarfare e.g., Yersinia pestis, Bacillus anthracis, etc.

Because of the globalisation and interconnectedness in the entire world, a threat against a disease in a particular place is a threat worldwide. The high rise in the emerging and re-emerging zoonoses are a Bane of the increasing interaction among human, animals, and environment due to elevated level of urbanisation, destruction of animal’s natural habitat, various forms of pollution, several natural calamities and disasters, global warming, and climate change. Extensive and reckless use of antibiotics, particularly in the livestock sector for increasing yield and preventing diseases, causes the natural and biological selection of resistant pathogens. These spread through animal-human interaction or food chain. Wildlife habitat fragmentation due to increasing infrastructural developments, decreasing biodiversity have inhibited the limitedness of the pathogens and the host vector interaction.From an analysis, quietly more than 75% of emerging disease pathogens are zoonotic: 60% of them spread animals to humans, and 80% are of concern for causing bioterrorism. Worldwide, these emerging zoonoses account for 2.5 billion cases and 2.7 billion death each year.[1]In addition to this, the amount of food borne diseases due to various pathogens (salmonellosis, pasteurellosis etc) have acutely increased. Food safety challenges have arisen from changes in food patterns, population growth, increasing meat consumption, globalization of food trade.

Contaminated food consumption causes foodborne illness of 600 million people and death of 400,000 people, each year. Hence, food safety assurance is of utmost need globally through a multi sectorial approach.Thus, this complex interconnectedness can be addressed upon only by the one health approach.

Benefits of One Health

The One Health platform has many useful benefits. A One Health Support Unit (OHSU) has been setup by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, aided by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and CII, to benefit the different stakeholders in the country consisting of experts from various areas to provide administrative, technical and research assistance to this project.

One Health can have the following benefits:

Reduce potential threats at the human-animal-environment interface to control diseases that spread between animals and humans.
Tackle anti-microbial resistance (AMR).
Ensure food safety.
Prevent environment-associated health hazard to both humans and animals.
Protect biodiversity.

Who makes the one health approach work?

Many professionals with a range of expertise are active in different sectors such as public health, animal health and the environment are involved and working together on a combined approach. International organisations like World Health Organisation along with World Organisation for Animal Health (formerly OIE, founded in 1924 for coordinating, supporting, and promoting animal disease control), CDC (centre for disease control and prevention), UNEP(United Nations Environment Programme). FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation) have their contributions in the One health programme.

One health programme in India

National Centre for disease control under MHFW GOI has implemented the Centre for One Health. The Centre for One Health has implemented three National Health Programs, these are:
National Rabies Control Program
National One Health Programme for Prevention and Control of Zoonoses
Program for Prevention and Control of Leptospirosis
Program for prevention and control of snakebite.

Apart from these programs, the division is also identified as-

The division is regularly conducting Outbreak Investigations in collaboration with State Nodal Officers of IDSP
Teachings
Trainings (PGs, MPH, EIS Program)

2. Firstly the Covid pandemic, secondly the recent outbreaks of Lumpy Skin Disease in cattle and thirdly the constant threat of Avian Influenza justifies that we should address the diseases from domestic and wild animals point of view instead of addressing from human concern. The Prime Minister’s Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC) in its 21st meeting decided to establish a National One Health Mission with a cross-ministerial effort whose motto will be to coordinate, support, and integrate all the existing One Health activities in the country and fill gaps to make these more effective.

3.The Government of India is planning to set up a separate centre under ICMR to address zoonotic diseases — the Centre for One Health at Nagpur and constituted a ‘National Expert Group on One Health’ to promote a co-ordinated and integrated approach to adopt and implement a One Health framework in India.

Global initiatives for one health –

One Health High-Level Expert Panel

In the end May 2021, the One Health High-Level Expert Panel (OHHLEP) was launched along with 26 selected key international experts. The OHHLEP acts as an advisory role to the Partners and it is expected to give suggestions to the Partners to support and enhance their provision of evidence-based scientific and policy advice to address the challenges raised by One Health.

The Quadripartite Collaboration (FAO/UNEP/WHO/WOAH) is an umbrella strategic coordination mechanism addressing all spectrum of One Health. It was established to work towards “A world capable of preventing, detecting, containing, eliminating, and responding to animal and public health risks attributable to zoonoses and animal diseases with an impact on food security through multi-sectoral cooperation and strong partnerships.”
The CDC(USA) has started various action plans to control various disease like-
1. Rift valley fever in Africa.
2. lead poisoning investigation in Nigeria.
3. influenza education to youths.
4. brucellosis in Uzbekistan.
5. collaboration in China for stepwise approach to rabies elimination (SARE) by 2030.

Conclusion

The One Health concept is being recognized as an effective way to fight health issues at the human-animal-environment interface, including zoonotic diseases. Owing to the spread of emerging and re-emerging diseases in the world for the past three decades, it is crucial for a collaborative approach like the One health programme. It brings forward the doctors, veterinarians, scientists to coordinate for the control of the zoonotic outbreaks, food borne illnesses, environmental and biodiversity protection. The research and development sector of our country should focus on improvising various aspects related to ‘one health concept,’ because we are having the highest population both in human and livestock. By focussing on one health approach, it will help in boosting our economy not only by proper utilising the livestock sector, but also utilising the human resources in a better way.

One Health enhances the healthy bonds among animals, people and ecosystem. To sum up, the principle of coexistence in global arena can be given ethical and moral importance only through the unified concept of One Health.

Akankhya Chakravarty

4th Professional Year

College of veterinary science and animal husbandry, OUAT Bhubaneswar

References