Diseases/disease emergence

Question 1

what causes disease emergence?

Answer 1

spill over
- disease carried by one species and spilt over to another species

pathogen pollution
- an animal moving from one area to another while carrying a pathogen with it
- can happen in the wild but also during wildlife trade, through pets

passive emergence
- things such as climate change e.g warmth/humidity that can cause a disease to arise/worsen
- no human involvement

Question 2

What is a vector borne disease

Answer 2

lyme disease
- caused by a bacteria which is transmitted through a tick bite
- most transmits are caused by immature ticks (nymphs)
- main host is rodents but can be other species such as birds
- climate change = more ticks present

prevention:
- understand high risk areas
- cover up as best as you can
- tick-proof your yard,
- continuously checking yourself and your pets for any ticks especially after walks

Question 3

a disease that threatens species survival

Answer 3

White nose syndrome
- caused by a fungus which is found on the snout, ears and wing membranes of bats
- more susceptible when hibernating as they are low in energy, lowered immune system plus more in a smaller space usually
- clinical signs: hibernating behaviours, increased mortality rates
- really threatening bats survival/population numbers which isn’t good as they serve such a great service to us e,g pollination, pest control

Prevention
- disease risk analysis
- decontaminate all clothes/shoes when leaving/entering caves
- education to the public regarding biosecurity
- stopping entry to caves unless for research purposes

Question 4

Disease that can affect livestock, wildlife and humans

Answer 4

Tuberculosis
- Two types of bacteria:
1. MTBC causes infection in humans and animals - M.Caprae, M.Pinnipedii & M.bovis found in AUS
2. MAC = infects wildlife

Management/prevention in the UK
- Annual or regular whole herd testing, as great as this is can still can false negatives due to tests being so sensitive
- culling individuals who test positive to try and save false populations
- Post-mortem surveillance of culled animals that were positive
- obviously a lot harder to detect in wildlife

Question 5

A disease that has a major impact of agriculture

Answer 5

Foot & Mouth disease
- highly contagious viral disease that has a major impact on agriculture systems across the world = loss of income to farmers as can’t sell/export meat
- there’s 7 different strains of this virus, only one vaccine created for one strain, so have a long way to go
- transmitted through excretions (saliva, etc) or air-borne
- also can be transmitted through contaminated products
- clinical signs: increased temp, weight loss, lesions such as blistering, death

Avoiding transmission:
- electric fencing to create barrier
- vaccination, but only for one strain
- surveillance
- reducing movement on property

Question 6

Impact on domestic animal health & human health

Answer 6

Hendra virus
- how it spreads between bats, horses, humans
- horse clinical signs: increased HR, difficulty breathing, high temp, muscle twitching
- Human symptoms: fever, sore throat, typical cold symptoms

prevention:
- surveillance
- make yard less attractive for bats
- cleaning
- understand clinical signs in horses