About this Research Topic
Zoonosis has played an important role in the emergence of new human diseases in recent decades. Around 70% of human etiological pathogens – from various bacterial, fungal and viral families – have arisen through zoonotic transmission from wild or domestic animals. These diseases have a significant impact not only on human health and economy, but also on the intertwined animal health. HIV, SARS, MERS and COVID-19 are among the recent emerging human diseases that originated from animal sources and spillover events, and now affect billions of people around the world. With rapid economic developments, urbanization and climate change impacts, humans and wild animals now come into contact more frequently, resulting in increased prevalence of interspecies transmission of pathogens, ultimately leading to recurrent and unpredictable disease outbreaks like COVID-19.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has placed currently unknown viruses which could cause future epidemics or pandemics, also known as ‘Disease X’, on their list of top priority pathogens. In previous pandemics, we have been one step behind in identifying the origin of the disease, especially when it has originated from an animal. In order to predict and prepare for the future potential outbreaks of zoonotic diseases, it is crucial to have more molecular and functional studies on animal viruses with potential pandemic threats.
There are numerous factors determining the interspecies transmission potential of viral pathogens from animals to humans, such as environmental factors, receptor usage, pathogen-host interaction, host-host interaction and immunological response. Understanding the mechanisms and evolutionary adaptation at the animal-human interface is crucial to prevent and control the emergence of infectious diseases.
This Research Topic welcomes manuscripts exploring viral zoonosis, including those focused on the origin, epidemiology, pathophysiology, cross-species transmission, and reverse-zoonosis. Suggested Topics include, but are not limited to:
• New virus discovery;
• Molecular characterization and comparative genomic studies on zoonotic viruses;
• Virus-host interactions research (e.g. protein structural analysis, proteomics and transcriptomics)
• Diagnostics, vaccine and antiviral development, and structure-aided drug discovery;
• Epidemiological studies on animal viruses with potential pandemic threats;
• Drivers of zoonotic spillover risk
The World Health Organization (WHO) has placed currently unknown viruses which could cause future epidemics or pandemics, also known as ‘Disease X’, on their list of top priority pathogens. In previous pandemics, we have been one step behind in identifying the origin of the disease, especially when it has originated from an animal. In order to predict and prepare for the future potential outbreaks of zoonotic diseases, it is crucial to have more molecular and functional studies on animal viruses with potential pandemic threats.
There are numerous factors determining the interspecies transmission potential of viral pathogens from animals to humans, such as environmental factors, receptor usage, pathogen-host interaction, host-host interaction and immunological response. Understanding the mechanisms and evolutionary adaptation at the animal-human interface is crucial to prevent and control the emergence of infectious diseases.
This Research Topic welcomes manuscripts exploring viral zoonosis, including those focused on the origin, epidemiology, pathophysiology, cross-species transmission, and reverse-zoonosis. Suggested Topics include, but are not limited to:
• New virus discovery;
• Molecular characterization and comparative genomic studies on zoonotic viruses;
• Virus-host interactions research (e.g. protein structural analysis, proteomics and transcriptomics)
• Diagnostics, vaccine and antiviral development, and structure-aided drug discovery;
• Epidemiological studies on animal viruses with potential pandemic threats;
• Drivers of zoonotic spillover risk
Keywords: zoonosis, novel, emerging, pathogens, interspecies, transmission, animal-human, interface, molecular, receptor, protein, structural, arenavirus, coronavirus, filovirus, flavivirus, hantavirus, influenzavirus, rotavirus
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.
