The IDEAL project, first attempt to study the complete pathogen landscape of any species, has generated a unique dataset and biorepository for researchers of infectious diseases of cattle in East Africa. Continue reading
Category Archives: Epidemiology
The seven deadly drivers of zoonotic disease pandemics
A report released by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and ILRI last month makes the case for focusing on the causes of pandemics instead of treating the diseases as they emerge, an argument echoed by many in the field. Continue reading
Domestic livestock not a source of the COVID-19 disease—ILRI veterinary epidemiologist Eric Fevre
Eric Fèvre, professor of veterinary infectious diseases at the University of Liverpool and jointly appointed at the International Livestock Research Institute in Kenya, . . . says people should not be concerned about their domestic livestock becoming a COVID-19 source. Continue reading
Why shutting down Chinese ‘wet markets’ could be a terrible mistake
The current focus on exotic food consumption in China often relies on Orientalisation, and is in some cases tinged with anti-Chinese sentiment. Continue reading
‘Tip of the iceberg’: is our destruction of nature responsible for Covid-19?
An article in The Guardian newspaper raises the question of whether human destruction of nature is responsible for mass pandemics like COVID-19. It quotes Eric Fevre, a principal scientist at the International Livestock Research Institute, on the ubiquity of possible germ sources: ‘”There are countless pathogens out there continuing to evolve which at some point … Continue reading
What keeps Bill Gates up at night? A (highly prescient) 2015 article spells out our COVID-19 challenges today
Gates’s model showed that a Spanish flu–like disease unleashed on the modern world would kill more than 33 million people in 250 days. “We’ve created, in terms of spread, the most dangerous environment that we’ve ever had in the history of mankind,” Gates says. Continue reading
Over-diagnosis of the milk-linked brucellosis disease in Kenya found—New study
Thousands of Kenyans are being wrongly diagnosed and treated for the milk linked disease brucellosis, reveals a new study. Now researchers at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri) and six international institutions, want the responsible test withdrawn from public hospitals. Continue reading
Kenya’s leading role in ‘One Health’ strategies controlling diseases transmitted between animals and people
‘Prof Eric Fèvre, a researcher of veterinary infectious diseases at the Institute of Infection and Global Health at the University of Liverpool and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Nairobi told the Business Daily the close interaction between people and animals worsened the situation. Continue reading
The epidemiological search for Ebola’s hiding places
After the recent epidemic, Ebola disappeared. But this relief is only temporary: the virus is hiding somewhere—maybe in forest animals, maybe closer to home. Leigh Cowart joins the hunt. This article was first published by Wellcome on Mosaic and is reproduced here under a Creative Commons licence. Continue reading
Tropical animal diseases and veterinary public health: ILRI at first AITVM/STVM joint conference
From 4-8 September 2016 more than 250 researchers from 55 different countries met in Berlin, Germany, in the historic buildings of the Humboldt University for the first joint conference of the Association of Institutions for Tropical Veterinary Medicine (AITVM) and the Society of Tropical Veterinary Medicine (STVM). Continue reading