News

  ISSUE 4 July 2018     Recent Publications   Using a One Health Approach, Duke Researchers and Collaborators in China Find Evidence for Cross-species Influenza A Transmission Within Swine Farms By Laura Borkenhagen, MSc In an effort to better understand the influenza A virus transmission between humans and pigs, Duke University researchers and collaborators from multiple organizations in China conducted a large prospective study of pigs, pig workers, and six pig farms. Their important work is one of the few to be conducted interdisciplinary way. It was recently published in the high impact journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.     Read more       Duke One Health Mongolian Team Identifies Potential Risk Factors for Zoonotic Disease Transmission Among Horse and Camel Herder Households By Lexi Sack, DVM In this pilot study, One Health D43 team 2 researchers from Duke University and The Institute of Veterinary Medicine in Mongolia conducted a survey of 131 households to determine the risk factors for transmitting zoonotic disease in households caring for horses and camels. Public health concerns may arise from using dried manure for fuel and drinking unprocessed river water.   Read more       Duke and University of Iowa Experts Point Out Novel Pathogen Threats Emerging from Chinese Swine Farms By Jane Fieldhouse, MSc In the high impact journal Lancet Infectious Diseases, Professor Gregory Gray from Duke University and Professor & former dean James Merchant from the University of Iowa College of Public Health commented upon emerging pathogens threats from China’s growing swine industry.  They argue that heightened biosafety and biosecurity measures are immediately needed to prevent future novel pathogen outbreaks.   Read more     Duke One Health Activities   Two Duke Global Health Institute Rising Second-Year Master’s Students Conduct Fieldwork Research in Borneo Island of Malaysia for 10 Weeks   Juliana Zemke is conducting a surveillance of arboviruses in Sarawak, Malaysia. Arbovirus surveillance is vastly under-resourced, relying heavily on passive surveillance systems in Malaysia. The current diagnostic methods for patients presenting with dengue-like infections may misconstrue cases of dengue, chikungunya, and Zika virus infections, given that all three arboviruses have similar clinical manifestations. In this pilot study, Juliana aims to gather evidence to determine the prevalence of dengue, chikungunya, and Zika viruses among patients with dengue-like infections at Sibu and Kapit hospitals. She also plans to validate the clinical value of the T-Cor 8 Real-Time PCR Thermocycler (Tetracore Inc., USA) in detecting these viruses.       Jessica Choi is conducting a field trail of new diagnostics help the local physicians and laboratorians in Kapit more rapidly diagnose a dangerous bacterial disease, melioidosis. The current diagnostics are limited by the time and inaccuracy. For melioidosis patients, the administration of antibiotics is critical as the bacteria causing melioidosis, Burkholderia pseudomallei, may lead to fatal conditions if left untreated. The rapid diagnostic tool developed by the University of Nevada team, which uses lateral flow immunoassay, may be a promising solution for the Kapit communities. This is the first time that this novel tool is being validated in a melioidosis-epidemic site. Jessica hopes that the new diagnostics will provide a better care for the affected individuals and that the Kapit medical team will build confidence when facing the future melioidosis patients.    <span style="font-family: Tim