Zoonoses a clear and present, growing danger

The worldwide sense of dread and apprehension that has arisen with the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, despite the resolute actions China has taken to contain it, shows that people still have a well-developed fear of deadly diseases.

Which in turn shows that the world needs to improve its defenses to guard against the threat of silent and invisible pathogenic killers.

When an outbreak occurs counter pandemic efforts focus on preventing the spread of the pathogen by limiting human-to-human transmission.

With the latest pandemic, China has endeavored to cut the transmission chain of the novel coronavirus by locking down Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, and its satellite towns, which are the epicenter of the outbreak, in effect quarantining more than 50 million residents.

And outside China, efforts are being made to prevent the importing of the virus via air travel, with the temperature screening of passengers and crew to identify any that might be infected and restricting travel from the Chinese mainland.

However, given the incubation periods for diseases these approaches have clear limitations.

In today's globalized society, it is better preparedness－not prevention－that is essential to reduce the risks of deadly pathogens spreading.

Studies show that infectious diseases account for 15.8 percent of all deaths and 43.7 percent of deaths in low-resource countries, and that 60 percent of known infectious diseases and up to 75 percent of new or emerging infectious diseases are spread to humans from other animals.

Such diseases, transmissible from animals to humans through direct contact or through food, water and the environment, are known as zoonoses. And while endemic zoonoses may actually pose a more insidious and chronic threat to both human and animal health according to experts, it is emerging zoonoses, such as the latest novel coronavirus, that are responsible for some of the most high-profile recent pandemics and which are setting alarm bells ringing.

As the genesis of these emerging zoonotic viruses is not well understood and their detection normally occurs after they have crossed over to humans, greater efforts are needed to learn more about them.

Also more intensive surveillance of the areas of known human-animal interactions, not just wildlife, but also livestock and pets, is needed to detect the first transmission of a novel virus to humans.

Early detection at the human-animal interface will provide earlier warning of a potential pandemic, as novel zoonotic viruses first circulate in animal populations and occasionally infect people before mutating for easier human-to-human transmission.

With human and animal health inextricably linked, a coordinated global alert system urgently needs to be established to signal when there is the potential threat from a zoonotic pathogen, not just viruses but also bacteria, fungi, parasites and prions.

Fundamentally, the only way to reduce the risks of animal-to-human transmission of deadly pathogens is to ensure that the necessary systems and funding are in place to ensure strong vigilance is maintained to detect that happening at the earliest possible moment, robust data sharing and better communication to the public of the risks of zoonotic diseases.

The author is a senior editor with China Daily. The views don't necessarily represent those of China Daily.