Infectious Diseases and HIV Conference

Pathogen zoonosis is the transmission of infectious agents from animals to humans. Such activity has greatly burdened public health around the world. This session will discuss mechanisms of zoonotic transmission, the role of animal reservoirs, and effective strategies in preventing and controlling zoonotic diseases.

Zoonotic diseases are those caused by pathogens with a potential for transmission between animals and humans. This module presents participants to key zoonotic pathogens, that is, viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungi causing disease in millions of people around the world. Participants will come to understand ecological and environmental factors in facilitating zoonotic transmission and the complex interactions between humans, animals, and their environment.

Dynamics of zoonotic transmission therefore include all pathways such as direct contact with animals, contaminated food exposure, and environmental exposure. The risk factors to be covered in this session include agricultural practice, wildlife trade, and increased patterns of urbanization. Case studies of some of the most memorable zoonotic outbreaks, Ebola, Zika, H1N1 influenza, will be considered; participants will determine how these risk factors favored the spread of disease. Implications of zoonotic diseases include impacts on public health in terms of morbidity, mortality, and loss to the economy.

This session will discuss the epidemiological trends of zoonotic diseases, focusing on impacts on health, a range of problems they impose on health systems, and insights into social determinants of health influencing vulnerability to zoonotic diseases and equitable access to resources for health-care and prevention. There is a need to integrate proper prevention and control measures, considering that the causative agent is responsible for zoonosis.

This session will be touching on the aspect of needing a One Health approach by engaging human and animal health in combination with environmental health strategy to ensure prevention from the transmission of zoonotic diseases. The participants will be exposed to surveillance systems, vaccination programs in animals, and public health campaigns that help curtail the risk of transmitting disease to humans. Community engagement will touch on the aspects of safe practices and awareness of zoonotic diseases.

The session will conclude with discussions on future research and interventions relating to pathogen zoonosis. Emerging trends in research on zoonotic diseases will be explored by participants, focusing on the potential ways genomics and bioinformatics could help elucidate transmission pathways.

Given an emphasis on interdisciplinary interaction among veterinarians, public health officials, and environmental scientists, complex challenges associated with zoonotic diseases will be discussed.