Zoonotic diseases in wildlife and the importance of surveilance
2012
Neimanis, A., National Veterinary Inst., Uppsala (Sweden). Dept. of Pathology and Wildlife Diseases
Wildlife diseases can have a significant effect on humans through their impacts on economy and cultural practices, but the most direct impact of wildlife on human health is through the zoonotic pathogens that wildlife can carry. Wildlife species are a major source of zoonoses. Some of these pathogens are ancient, for example rabies was first reported in 2300 BC. However, novel zoonoses are constantly being discovered (e.g. SARS, HIV). Of all emerging infectious diseases in humans, those originating from wildlife are believed to pose the most significant risk to global human health (Jones et al, Nature, 2008). Wildlife zoonoses reported in Europe are numerous and include viruses (e.g. rabies, tick-borne encephalitis, hantaviruses), bacteria (e.g. bovine tuberculosis, tularemia, brucellosis) and parasites (e.g. trichinellosis, echinococcosis). With increasing globalization, human population expansion and encroachment into wildlife habitat, introductions of invasive species, and environmental, socioeconomic and microbial change, the presence and maintenance of pathogens within a given ecosystem is in constant flux.
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