If ever there were proof that humans are animals too, it’s in the diseases that we share with other species. From rabies and Zika to Ebola and bird flu, many deadly diseases around the world can pass between animals and people.
Currently, we have three options when trying to protect people from such zoonotic diseases. We can vaccinate the animals that can pass them on, the humans that can contract them, or take steps to help the two avoid contact. But what if there were a simple, inexpensive way to protect both people and other species at the same time, using the same vaccine?
This was my starting point when I decided to investigate the possibility of a single cross-species vaccine for Rift Valley Fever, one of the World Health Organization’s priority diseases.
Read the full article on The Conversation website, written by George Warimwe, Associate Professor in Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health (Nuffield Department of Medicine).
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