Scott Nuismer, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology and professor of mathematics at University of Idaho, explains the benefits of transmissible vaccines and responds to concerns about it.
A new technology aims to stop wildlife from spreading Ebola, rabies, and other viruses. It could prevent the next pandemic by stopping pathogens from jumping from animals to people.
Rabies, Ebola or the new coronavirus: Viruses from the animal kingdom can be dangerous to humans. A possible counter-strategy: Vaccinate wild animals with vaccines that, just like viruses, spread independently in a population. The idea sounds good, but it’s not entirely without its pitfalls.
The virus that causes Covid-19 jumped to humans from animals, just like HIV, Ebola, and so many others before it. While scientists race to develop a safe and effective vaccine for the new disease, hundreds of thousands of people have already died.
Scientists still debate whether the SARS-CoV-2 virus originated in a bat or a pangolin. But they are sure that this coronavirus is only the most recent example of a zoonosis — an infectious disease that passes from animals to humans.
The coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 that has dominated the news since early 2020 has something in common with other diseases that have hit the headlines in recent years.
We already have technology that allows wildlife to pass vaccines among themselves, and developing methods may speed up the process. But critics claim that they risk human infections and criminal misuse.