Emerging and Zoonotic Virus Challenges of Developing Nations.

Abstract

The word “Emerging Diseases” encompasses the potential threat posed by infectious pathogens to humans and animals. In the recent times, several epidemics and few pandemics of viral origin have haunted the global population. Majorly, the transboundary and zoonotic pathogens are of concerns to the public health. Most recently, Zika virus has been found with confounding situation in Asian countries. Correspondingly, other infectious viruses like Ebola virus, SARS, MERS, Dengue, Chicken Guinea, West Nile and Japanese encephalitis have created panic owing to their severe life-threatening consequences, affecting larger population globally with a high toll of human deaths, gaining potential of rapid spread across borders of many countries, and creating economic impacts and high sufferings to the mankind. Of note, nearly two-thirds of these viral pathogens have been of zoonotic nature having significant public health concerns. Predisposing factors such as deforestation, urbanization, ecotourism, fast population movement, changing climatic issues (global warming), and ecological alterations with the evolution of newer viral pathogens /strains and jumping the host species barriers, etc, altogether they have increased the human and animals interface including wildlife, which has lured up a number of infectious viral diseases. Generally, viral pathogens remain under-diagnosed under the limited health services, lack of awareness and poorly coordinated health efforts, especially in the developing and underdeveloped countries. The research advances made during the last two decades are paving novel and effective ways to tackle such infectious agents in a better way. Additionally, enhanced disease surveillance and monitoring, rapid diagnostics, inventing effective prophylactics, and adapting appropriate public health measures would certainly help in combating the emerging viral threats.