Mapping Zoonotic Disease.

Compiling data from hundreds of studies on past zoonotic disease outbreaks, Barbara Han, a disease ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, New York, and her colleagues have mapped where current reservoirs are most likely to be found. The goal was to be able to predict where future pathogenic leaps from mammals to humans are likely to occur. “What we really want to do is shift the strategy from one of being defensive—always running around putting out fires—to one that’s preemptive,” Han told The Washington Post. “One step toward that goal is to figure out where things are, what’s carrying the known diseases and what’s their distribution.” But the results, published today (June 14) in Trends in Parasitology, are only a piece of the puzzle, she added. “It’s a hard game to play because there’s hundreds and hundreds of combinations of different zoonoses and carriers. We’d hoped to find a unifying theme, and instead there’s just 45 more questions that need to be answered.” Zoonotic diseases are not, for example, concentrated in tropical environments, as might be predicted. In fact, the subarctic—Alaska, northern Canada, and northern Russia—had the same number of zoonoses as the tropics, despite being home to fewer reservoir species. “Even though there are more species in the tropics, fewer of them carry zoonoses,” Han said in a press release. “In contrast, more of the species living in northern latitudes, such as the Arctic Circle, carry more zoonoses. Understanding the implications of this pattern in light of climate warming trends will be an important line of inquiry that should be addressed sooner rather than later.” Other hot spots included Europe—consistent with previous zoonotic mapping efforts—as well as Southeast Asia. Han and colleagues also turned up surprises when assessing which types of animal hosts harbor the most zoonotic pathogens. Rodents, for example, carried about the same number as carnivores, despite having nearly 10 times as many species. “I’m hoping to work together with people who really understand public health to think about the wildlife human interface, and the cultural things that permit or prevent that from happening,” Han told The Washington Post. “This is a multifaceted question and very complex . . . and the devil’s in the details.” Contributed by the scientist.

MAPPING GENOMES ,DATA AND HEALTHCARE SYSTEM.

The human body is basically made up of million of cells that are packed with vital information about a person,their health status,disease tendencies and preferences. Genes have been the basis of existence of living creatures,providing information as regards the entity,much of the potential hidden in each entity were never fully utilized,because the level of information available at that time and what many believe was possible. Today,the story is very different with genome mapping,creating a new approach to disease diagnosis,treatment options and prevention of genetic diseases. This mapping of genomes provides us a wide range of data for health protocols, strategic planning and advanced understanding of what makes a man,who he is,what he feels and loves to do and eat. Beijing Genomics CEO Ye Yin, explains that a huge amount of information is locked in each of us and decoding it all could unlock big secrets. He spoke at Wired health , that there are around 100 trillion cells in the human body, each one containing three billion base pairs of DNA. If stretched in a line, they would cover the distance from Earth to the Moon more than 8,000 times. Despite the information density of the human genome, the actual genetic diversity between species isn't that wide. Yin pointed out that we share 63 per cent of our genes with fish and up to 96 per cent with chimpanzees. Even between two humans, the individual genetic variance is only around 0.5 per cent, yet it can result in pronounced differences. Yin said You can grow tall or short and there are maybe only a few base pairs difference in certain genes but genes determine many variable obvious phenotypes. For example, double or single eyelids, whether you can bend your thumbs back or not, if you can roll your tongue, even how much alcohol you can drink. Yin said if genes can be accurately mapped, then this will be a "big data revolution for healthcare". There is already, non-invasive prenatal tests that tests in-utero babies' DNA for Down's Syndrome, and Yin sees "gene tech" becoming like vaccines – a public health shield. Yin's company ,BGI Genomics is one of the world's leading genomics companies. They have recorded outstanding successes ,among which are decoding the Sars virus and creating the first detection kit; sequencing the first ancient human's genome; and serving as a key sequencing centre in the 1000 Genomes Project. Widespread genetic sequencing also has the potential to reflect population-wide health trends. Ying showed heatmaps generated from sequencing data depicting rates of likelihood of disease-causing mutations across China, contrasted against Europe. If this practice became common, the information could even reveal health differences between towns, potentially highlighting local-scale problems. The wealth of information in our cells is just a tip of the iceberg , Yin points to another genomic factor that can impact our health which is the bacteria in our guts. "There are always two to three kilograms of gut microbials in every person," he said . "It's another genome in our body and its even called a second breed. If you feel hungry, maybe it's your bacteria that feels hungry, not you. They're saying 'you must give us some cultures we want'." Even though it's all coming from the same gene background ,the human body the different microgenomics can have huge effects. Experiments on mice have shown that swapping bacteria can affect weight gain and retention. The results are a brand new way of rethinking various nutritional elements, and how to correct them . The phenomenal amount of data in our bodies can, and eventually will be mapped, right down to the individual and microgenomic levels,but human behavior and choices will remain a major influence on our health. materials from wired