“Microbes are always going to be one step ahead of us. Their generation
time is 24 hours, ours is 30 years. They mutate, they change, they will
find a way. They are amazing opportunists.â€ÂÂ
Dorothy Crawford -Professor of Medical Microbiology at the University of Edinburgh and author Deadly Companions.
The vigorous international trade in exotic pets such as monkeys,
crocodiles and rats must be stopped if human beings are to be protected
from global pandemics, according to Dorothy Crawford, Professor of
Medical Microbiology and a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
In an interview with the TimesOnline of London, she said that "the risk
to people from zoonoses – animal-borne microbes – had never been
greater, and that there was a need to reexamine our relationship with
wild and domestic animals."
Combining tales of devastating epidemics with science and fascinating history, Deadly Companions reveals how closely microbes have evolved with us over the millennia, shaping human civilization through infection, disease, and deadly pandemic. Beginning with a dramatic account of the SARS pandemic at the start of the 21st century, Dorothy Crawford takes us back in time to follow the interlinked history of microbes and humanity, offering an up-to-date look at ancient plagues and epidemics, and identifying key changes in the way humans have lived--such as our move from hunter-gatherer to farmer to city-dweller--which made us ever more vulnerable to microbe attack.
Showing that how we live our lives today--with increased crowding and air travel--puts us at risk, Crawford asks whether we might ever conquer microbes completely, and whether we need a more microbe-centric view of the world.
Most emerging infections, including
HIV, severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) and bird flu had been
acquired from animals and no one could say how many other devastating
diseases could yet mutate to human beings, Professor Crawford said.
“Who knows what could be hiding around the corner? We really have to
think about what we are doing,†she said. Crawford also predicted that
global travel would need to be restricted in the event of an avian flu
pandemic.
As an example, Professor Crawford highlighted a consignment of giant
Gambian rats, which were flown from Ghana into the U.S. as exotic pets.
The rats carried monkeypox virus, which transferred to prairie dogs
that were sold in the same pet shop. The prairie dogs then passed the
disease to their human buyers. The chain of infection was only
terminated after the microbe had infected 71 people. In another
instance, crocodiles being farmed in Papua New Guinea to provide luxury
items for the West had been infected by a virus from wild pig meat,
which crossed to their keeper.
Crawford said that it
was “only a matter of time†before the growing tourist demand for bush
meat in Africa led to a new epidemic from microbes jumping from their
primate host. She said that common sense could be as helpful as
scientific advancement in preventing pandemics.
“We just don’t
treat microbes with enough respect. Is it really necessary to have a
horrible, ugly giant Gambian rat as a pet? Is it sensible to fly
carcasses from South America? Do we need to travel to Spain or even
South Africa for the weekend? We really need to think. We could start
chipping away those things which are completely unnecessary.â€ÂÂ
Professor
Crawford predicts that an avian flu outbreak would likely restrict
commercial flying. “When that comes, we are going to have to change our
lifestyles and cooperate globally,†she said. All this, of course, prior to the current swine flu outbreak.
By Casey Kazan.
Related Galaxy posts:
Don"t miss the fascinating video, The Ghost Map -the story of the great cholera outbreak that devastated London in the 1870"s.
The Ghost Map
Hot Zone: Scientists Unlock Secret of 1918 "Spanish Flu" Pandemic
Pandemics from Outer Space Possible? Europe"s Scientists Discuss The Future of Humans in Space
Story Sources:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article2759830.ece
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Deadly-Companions-Microbes-Shaped-History/dp/0192807196