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- Fuller, Trevon, et al.
(författare)
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The Ecology of Emerging Infectious Diseases in Migratory Birds: An Assessment of the Role of Climate Change and Priorities for Future Research
- 2012
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Ingår i: EcoHealth. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1612-9202 .- 1612-9210. ; 9:1, s. 80-88
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Pathogens that are maintained by wild birds occasionally jump to human hosts, causing considerable loss of life and disruption to global commerce. Preliminary evidence suggests that climate change and human movements and commerce may have played a role in recent range expansions of avian pathogens. Since the magnitude of climate change in the coming decades is predicted to exceed climatic changes in the recent past, there is an urgent need to determine the extent to which climate change may drive the spread of disease by avian migrants. In this review, we recommend actions intended to mitigate the impact of emergent pathogens of migratory birds on biodiversity and public health. Increased surveillance that builds upon existing bird banding networks is required to conclusively establish a link between climate and avian pathogens and to prevent pathogens with migratory bird reservoirs from spilling over to humans.
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- Nicholls, Ian A., et al.
(författare)
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Synthetic Neuraminidases : Nanostructured Materials for Environmental Monitoring
- 2011
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Ingår i: Ecohealth, vol. 7, Supplement 1. - : Springer. ; , s. S97-S97
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The risks to society associated with the spread of new strains of influenza with human pathogenicity, or with impact on agricultureare significant. Our capacity to challenge the threat of the virus is dependent upon our ability to develop new vaccines, and upon ouraccess to effective virus-targeted small molecule pharmaceuticals. The current primary small molecule weapons oseltamivir(Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza) currently form our last line of defence against this virus. More recently, the identification ofstrains resistant to (in particular) drugs targeting neuraminidase has awoken serious concern. Equally as worrying is the clearevidence of the presence of these substances in the World’s water systems which has now come forth. Collectively, this makes thedevelopment of techniques giving us better insight into the virus and antiviral agents a priority. Robust methods for the rapid andsensitive determination of these substances are required, especially as the monitoring methods should be able to withstand therigours of environments not normally conducive to biomacromolecules (temperature, toxic substances etc) e.g. antibodies.Advanced materials fulfilling these requirements can be obtained by Molecular Imprinting, which is a technique forproducing highly selective synthetic receptors for biochemical and chemical structures in synthetic polymers. The polymerscontain nano-structured cavities that are of complementary functional and structural character to predetermined target.The technique entails the judicious selection of a monomer or monomer mixture with chemical functionality comple-mentary to that of the imprint species (template). The complementary interacting functionalities (reversible covalent ornon-covalent) form predictable solution structures, which after polymerisation in the presence of a suitable cross linkingagent and removal of the template lead to the defining of recognition sites of complementary steric and functionaltopography to the template molecule. These sites give selective recognition of the template. Furthermore, by analogy tocatalytic antibody production, using transition state analogues as templates yields synthetic enzymes.Synthetic polymers with neuraminidase-like behaviour have been designed through the screening of candidate polymersystems using a combination of molecular dynamics and NMR studies. The characterisation of the resulting materials hasdemonstrated systems with selectivity for the targeted antiviral agents. Our studies illustrate the potential of these uniquenanostructured materials for the monitoring of these antiviral agents in the environment, which is an important aspect inefforts aimed at limiting the development of resistant strains, and as a tool for policy makers.
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- Svensson, Lovisa, et al.
(författare)
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Infection Ecology and Epidemiology, IEE Network - A New Interdisciplinary Collaboration of Researchers in Zoonotic Infections
- 2011
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Ingår i: EcoHealth, vol. 7, Supplement 1. - : Springer. ; , s. S80-S81
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Combating zoonoses effectively requires an approach where researchers take in account the ‘‘one health’’ concepts. TheInfection Ecology and Epidemiology, IEE network was started to stimulate interdisciplinary projects with potential toincrease knowledge of the emergence, spread and effects of infectious disease in humans, domestic animals and wildlife. Themain objective for IEE is to provide a platform where researchers from multiple medical and ecological disciplines caninteract and create synergies through collaboration, annual meetings and workshops.The first IEE meeting, in March 2010, served as a unique opportunity for Swedish researchers (veterinarians, physicians,ecologists, epidemiologists and others with relevant backgrounds) interested in infectious diseases to interact over disci-plinary boundaries. The meeting was a great success with almost 100 participants from across the nation. Since the meetinginterest in IEE has continued to increase and the number of researchers supporting IEE now has now passed 150.The projects within the IEE network range from antibiotic resistance in bacteria to the genetic virology of vector-bornepathogens, zoonotic viroses and gastrointestinal pathogens. The rationale is not to build up new laboratory facilities, but touse and collaborate within already established research structures. Within the network we have access to original samples ofanimal, human and environmental origin for collaborative projects for detection and characterization of viruses andbacteria. We hope that the IEE network will provide a sustainable platform for interdisciplinary collaborations and a stronginternational research environment for research on zoonotic infections.
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| 7. |
- Åstrom, Christofer, et al.
(författare)
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Potential Distribution of Dengue Fever Under Scenarios of Climate Change and Economic Development
- 2012
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Ingår i: EcoHealth. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1612-9202 .- 1612-9210. ; 9:4, s. 448-454
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Dengue fever is the most important viral vector-borne disease with similar to 50 million cases per year globally. Previous estimates of the potential effect of global climate change on the distribution of vector-borne disease have not incorporated the effect of socioeconomic factors, which may have biased the results. We describe an empirical model of the current geographic distribution of dengue, based on the independent effects of climate and gross domestic product per capita (GDPpc, a proxy for socioeconomic development). We use the model, along with scenario-based projections of future climate, economic development, and population, to estimate populations at risk of dengue in the year 2050. We find that both climate and GDPpc influence the distribution of dengue. If the global climate changes as projected but GDPpc remained constant, the population at risk of dengue is estimated to increase by about 0.28 billion in 2050. However, if both climate and GDPpc change as projected, we estimate a decrease of 0.12 billion in the population at risk of dengue in 2050. Empirically, the geographic distribution of dengue is strongly dependent on both climatic and socioeconomic variables. Under a scenario of constant GDPpc, global climate change results in a modest but important increase in the global population at risk of dengue. Under scenarios of high GDPpc, this adverse effect of climate change is counteracted by the beneficial effect of socioeconomic development.
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