COVID-19 and Emerging Zoonosis - The Clock is Counting Down: Time for Closer Collaboration between Veterinary and Human Medicine

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) quickly spread from China and crossed international borders. For the first time in this century, the world is facing a nightmare of 2 million deaths due to the respiratory pandemic by January 2021. Most of the emerging or re-emerging pathogens are likely to be zoonotic, and SARS-CoV-2 potentially has an animal origin, a circumstance that is a public health concern and a burden on any country’s economy. Greater awareness and understanding of potential disease promoters and effective disease surveillance systems are crucial for detecting outbreaks of emerging zoonotic diseases as quickly as possible. In order to achieve this goal, there is an urgent need for a One Health approach between human and veterinary medicine. Indeed, the One Health approach, along with all the lessons learned from previous coronavirus threats (SARS- and MERS-CoVs), as well as the advance of science is essential for dealing with emerging zoonosis, including COVID-19. It is urgent to create task forces, networks and all types of collaborations between human and veterinary medicine to prevent future pandemic events.