Food Security - National Agricultural Biotechnology Council ...

The West Nile virus is another dramatic example of the animal- and public-healthchallenges of understanding an emerging disease with only limited personnel dedicatedto understanding insect vectors and viral spread through wild-bird hosts. Originally adisease of Africa and Europe, it was first observed in New York in 1999 (Lanciotti et al.,1999). Initially misdiagnosed as St. Louis encephalitis, this disease, new to the Westernhemisphere, was astutely diagnosed with the combined efforts of a veterinary pathologist,a physician, and epidemiologists. The virus now has been documented in all statesof the continental United States. Migratory birds and competent mosquito vectors wereinstrumental in the rapid westward spread. The ensuing epizootic has had a dramaticeffect on horse, bird, and human populations. In 2002, over 15,000 horses were reportedill, and 30% died as a result of the infection (CDC, 2002a). The impact on raptors andcorvids (blue jays and American crows) has also been well documented (Wunschmannet al., 2004). However, the broader impact within ecosystems, especially on wildlife, isunknown. From 1999 through 2004, over 16,700 human cases and 666 deaths werereported in the United States (Hayes and Gubler, 2005). This disease highlights some ofthe new challenges for human clinicians of unusual disease presentations (e.g., acute flaccidparalysis syndrome) and new routes of transmission (e.g., blood transfusion and organtransplantation). The appearance of West Nile virus required the training and funding ofpublic-health officials in mosquito trapping, vector control, and close collaboration withacademic institutions for disease surveillance and public education.Lack of Oversight and RegulationsMonkeypox was first documented in 1958 in a colony of primates (hence the term). Thefirst human cases were identified in 1970 in Zaire by local health officials on the lookoutfor the re-emergence of the smallpox virus. This rare disease was documented amongpeople who lived where hunting was an integral aspect of their lifestyle. The naturaldisease hosts are likely several species of squirrel.In 2003, an outbreak in the United States associated with legally imported African“pocket pets” led to seventy-two suspected human cases in six states (CDC, 2003b).Eighteen persons were hospitalized, some because of the potential for human-to-humanspread. Interestingly, a number of the cases were veterinarians and veterinary techniciansexposed while treating ill pets, highlighting potential occupational risk. The majority ofpatients had direct or close contact with prairie dogs that were infected by close contactwith imported animals from Ghana, shipped to a distributor in Texas. The shipmentincluded six genera of African rodents, including rope squirrels (Funiscuirus sp.), treesquirrels (Heliosciurus sp.), Gambian giant rats (Cricetomys sp.), brushtail porcupines(Atherurus sp.), dormice (Graphiurus sp.), and striped mice (Hybomys sp.). There was areal concern of spillover of the virus from these imported animals to susceptible wildlifepopulations in the United States.Even though this outbreak was not directly related to agriculture, it exemplifies theproblem of both legal and illegal animal movements. The US Fish and Wildlife Serviceestimates that the global trade in endangered wildlife is $4.2 billion annually, second onlyto illegal drugs. Other examples of emerging diseases linked to live-animal trade, include140 Food Security: The Intersection of Sustainability, Safety and Defense