Bangalore_4th program_Science and Community: One Health series, VITM, Jan 19, 2025
We wrapped up the 4th program of the 'Science and Community-One Health Series', on Jan 19, 2025.
The expert lecture 'Emerging and re-emerging zoonotic viral diseases' was by Dr. ASHOK MUNIVENKATAPPA, Scientist, ICMR-National Institute of Virology, Bangalore Unit.
The engaging talk brough together college students from life science background and faculties/teachers, understanding the concepts of pathogens, and role of community members to spread the awareness and participate to mitigate the disease-spread.
Dr. Ashok explained that zoonotic diseases arise when a virus jumps from an animal host to humans, a process often triggered by human interventions in natural viral habitats.
He presented case studies from India to illustrate the transmission and infection dynamics of key zoonotic viruses, including Nipah Virus (NiV), Kyasanur Forest Disease Virus (KFDV), and Zika Virus (ZIKV). He highlighted that the Zika virus strain in India is less virulent than its African counterpart, which has helped prevent large-scale outbreaks in the country.
Regarding Kyasanur Forest Disease, he emphasized the importance of vigilance, noting that sudden monkey deaths serve as a warning for healthcare authorities to test for the disease in both monkeys and humans.
He also praised Kerala's healthcare system for its effective response to Nipah virus outbreaks. He commended their well-organized, multi-tiered surveillance and rapid containment measures, which successfully limited the spread of the virus.
During the Q&A session, he addressed the challenges of developing vaccines for viruses, highlighting their remarkable ability to mutate and adapt. While vaccines are designed to "train" the immune system to recognize and neutralize pathogens, a robust immune response remains crucial for combating infections effectively.
The series, with a prelaunch on Nov 12, 2024 is a collaboration with National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute for Genetics and Society, India and Visvesvaraya Industrial & Technological Museum, @Ministry of Culture, Govt of India as part of the ongoing traveling exhibit "Vaccine-Injecting hope" at VITM. The series will run until Feb 2025.
Design: Several exhibits, hands-on activities, educational games, films related to public health surveillance and One Health along with expert talks on public health surveillance, climate health and animal health, panel discussion with scientists and clinicians for interactions with the assembled community members: ranging from colleges, students pursuing masters and bachelor’s in science, high school students, NGOs & educators.
Outreach Leads: Dr. Sufia Sadaf, NCBS and Ms. Jyoti Mehra, VITM
Written by :-
Dr. Sufia Sadaf,
Program Manager,
The Rockefeller Foundation-Alliance for Pathogen Surveillance Innovations (RF-APSI)
NCBS-TIFR
Bangalore