Bird Flu, SARS, and Plague, Oh My!
With the rather alarming news today that Seoul officials ordered all poultry in the city destroyed http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/12/AR2008051200314.html due to a Bird Flu outbreak, we have another reminder of the threat pandemic viruses pose to human health across the globe. Whether the Korean outbreak turns out to be the H5N1 strain or not, the history of communicable disease is marked by unsettling patterns of viruses jumping from other animal species to humans and then wiping out millions.
But, immunologist, Anthony Fauci, sees many “low-hanging fruit” that we could address on the epidemiological stage. From malaria to AIDS, he sees disease epidemics, even in less-developed nations with minimal health infrastructure, as within our ability to control. But he might just need a billion dollars to do it.
