MADISON, Wis.– Before COVID, the possibility of a new disease emerging seemingly out of nowhere and spreading around the world in a matter of days sounded like the plot of a science fiction movie. However, some researchers had been warning this would happen… and now say, it will again.
“Will we have another pandemic in our lifetime? Absolutely,” said Dr. Ajay Sethi, a professor at the UW School of Medicine & Public Health. “One thing we’ve learned in the past year is that we weren’t adequately prepared to deal with a pandemic.”
COVID-19 is a zoonotic virus, or one that’s transmitted from animals to humans. The first infections usually occur when people either have direct contact with animals or eat contaminated food. Both are becoming more common.
“The encroachment of humans into areas where animals are present increases the change for pathogens to jump from one species to another,” Sethi explained.
In the last century, humans destroyed half of the world’s rainforests, killing predators and increasing the number of prey — animals like rats and mice — that are more likely to spread viruses to humans.
However, there is good news. The current pandemic has taught researchers a lot about how to reduce the risk of future outbreaks.
Sethi said, throughout the past year, we’ve learned the importance of containing a virus early, before it becomes nearly unstoppable.
We’ve also learned how essential vaccines are, and the importance of leadership and messaging to quickly and effectively distribute them to the majority of our population.
So, what’s next?
Researchers are currently trying to identify the 1.7 million viruses present in animals. Others are working on a universal, pan-coronavirus vaccine that would target a range of viruses, from the ones that cause the common cold to more serious respiratory infections like COVID.
“COVID’s not going away, but we are learning how to live with it,” added Sethi.
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