Zoonotic Diseases and Spillover Risks!
Zoonotic Diseases and Spillover Risks! Zoonotic diseases and spillover risks represent one of the most pressing challenges in contemporary global health, bridging the interfaces of human, animal, and environmental health. Zoonotic diseases, defined as infections naturally transmitted between vertebrate animals and humans, include well-known pathogens such as Ebola virus, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, avian influenza viruses, and rabies, as well as emerging threats like Nipah virus, Hendra virus, and the various coronaviruses that have caused repeated outbreaks over the past two decades. The mechanisms underpinning spillover—the process by which a pathogen crosses species barriers—are multifactorial, involving ecological, biological, socio-economic, and environmental determinants. Human activities such as deforestation, urban expansion, agricultural intensification, and wildlife trade disrupt natural ecosystems and bring humans and domestic animals into closer contact with wildli...