One Health

This issue is focussed on “One Health”. The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines One Health as “an integrated, unifying approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals and ecosystems”. One health recognises the interconnection between people, animals, and plants and their shared environment.Given the increasing prominence of the topic over the past 20–30 years, it may appear that this is a relatively new concept, although in reality, it has long been recognised by scientists that there is an interconnection between human and animal health. In the early 1800s, Dr Rudolf Virchow coined the phrase “zoonosis” to describe an infectious disease passed between humans and animals. Since that time, much of the One Health movement has been concerned with combatting infectious diseases and limiting zoonosis, an area that was given significant focus following on from the COVID19 pandemic. More recently, there has been increasing recognition that One Health should include concerns arising from population movements, climate issues and environmental pollution. It is increasingly recognised that changes in the balance in ecosystems induced by human behaviour have the potential to impact on both human and animal health. It is easy to imagine how climate change may alter the geographical reach of tropical diseases. For example, the WHO has identified malaria as one of the most climate-sensitive diseases.In this edition, we have four features and a student perspective article on One Health.Very topically, the first article by Conlan, Elley and Goldhill outlines how what started as an outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza in 2024 in the USA has to led to outbreaks in chickens and cats, and most recently in man. The authors note that while the major impacts of this current wave of infections have been in animals, there is certainly a potential for a greater impact on humans. Worryingly, they argue that improper testing and surveillance so soon after the COVID19 pandemic should be of concern to us all.Testing and surveillance is also a theme in the second article by La Course et al. They describe how recent molecular analysis has identified the existence of previously unknown hybrid Schistosome parasites. Schistosome species are the causative agents of Schistosomiasis or Bilharzia, a parasitic disease that affects multiple hosts including man and is a great burden on animal and human health in tropical and sub-tropical regions. It has traditionally been considered that different hosts were susceptible to infections by different Schistosoma species. The article describes how simple microscopic analysis of egg shapes followed by molecular analysis work has identified the existence of hybrid Schistosoma species. It then highlights how this may impact on the diagnosis and treatment of this disease and calls for a great “One Health” focus on the problem.Trishna Tungadi introduces us to the relationship between aphids and the transmission of plant viruses. I think of aphids as those annoying things that get all over me when I am riding my bike. Others may think of them as spoiling their garden plants. There are thousands of aphid species in environment and there are known to be very efficient vectors for transmission of plant viruses. This transmission occurs across a wide range of both crop and non-crop plants. Viral infection of crops can devastate agriculture, and this has an impact on both the crops and the growers, but more importantly on the population that relies on them for food. The author highlights the need to a great understanding of the process by which viruses can alter vector behaviour and also into the increasing tolerance of aphids to multiple classes of insecticides.In the final article, Keshavarz, Murphy and Rolff introduce us to the topic of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) and the potential that they can be developed into new drugs to combat the very pressing problem of antimicrobial resistance. AMPs exist across phylogeny as naturally occurring proteins produced to ad in antibacterial defences. Although the article has something of a focus on AMPs in insects, it shows clearly how AMPs are employed by all species as part of their innate immune defences. The article also shows how multiple AMPs often exert synergistic effects against bacteria and that these molecules can form the basis for the rational design of more potent synthetic AMP derivatives. These can be considered to be potentially important in the fight against antimicrobial resistance.Our student-focused piece by Ailbhe Herity highlights one of the most recently identified and topically important “One Heath” issues of plastic, and more specifically, microplastic pollution. Microplastic pollution derived from the enormous quantities of plastic that the world consumes has become a very hot topic in recent years. It is becoming clear that microplastics are long lived (indestructible?) contaminants that have found their way into almost every part of the environment. Although research on their effects is fast evolving, it remains unclear exactly what their impact on animal and human health will be. The author makes a compelling case that research in this area really has to have a “One Heath” component if we are truly to understand their effects.Although these topics may appear to be a little depressing, I hope you enjoy reading them and can see how the efforts of the bioscience community can be harnessed to address these critically important issues for the whole world. Please reach out to us if you have any comments on this issue or if you would like to contribute to the magazine in the future.