About this Research Topic

Background

Ubiquitous microorganisms play an essential role in the initiation, development, and perpetuation of various diseases. Coordinated by the advances in molecular sequencing, recent researches not only have revealed extensive diversity within the category microorganisms but also identify many novel zoonotic bacteria/virus transmitted by animals and other vectors, as well as the ever unknown function of microbiomes, such as affecting host metabolism, fecundity, immunity, and longevity. Given the current global plague that is being caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, research in microbiology related to vector-borne disease and zoonotic disease has become a hot topic again, in particular, under the context of “One Health”.

“One Health” highlights the interconnectedness of human, animal, and ecosystem health, while microorganisms present a unique position in close contact with all aspects. Infection with pathogenic microorganisms could lead to severe infectious diseases and deaths in human and animal populations. There are many examples of pathogen transmission from wildlife resulting in the establishment of infection in human populations. The recent emergence of zoonotic diseases (e.g., Ebola virus, avian influenza, nCoV-EMC) stressed the importance of understanding the crosstalk between human, animal, and environmental. So, there is an urgent need to re-examine related knowledge in microbiology to expand our understanding towards unravelling the underlying interplay of host, vector, and pathogenic microorganisms.

The Research Topic covered in this collection are not limited to human diseases but often include closely interlinked vector-borne disease and zoonotic disease. The collection focuses on:

• Infectious disease research at the cellular, molecular and multi-omics levels;
• Emerging diseases and re-emerging infectious diseases caused by microorganisms (bacteria, fungi and parasites);
• Dynamic interactions between microorganisms and their hosts;
• The evolution of infectious diseases pathogens including food-, soil-, water- and vector-borne as well as opportunistic causal agents and their related drug resistance problem, especially, at a global view.

Transdisciplinary or multisectoral works featured on global health, as well as one health strategy toward achieving optimal health and added value for humans, animals and their shared environment, are very much welcome as well. This Research Topic will accept original research and review articles.

Keywords: One Health, Global Health, Microbiology, Vector-borne disease, Zoonotic disease

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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