Publication date: Jul 07, 2026
Rabies is one example. That sounds reassuring, but viruses evolve quickly and there is an understandable concern that a zoonotic virus might acquire the ability to spread among humans. Finding and understanding new viruses faster would deny the next pandemic the same head start, and could make a huge difference to the eventual toll on lives and livelihoods. These are known as zoonotic viruses, meaning people usually catch them from animals rather than other people. In a typical year, scientists discover two or three viruses that have never been seen in people before. They might become even more transmissible as did a series of Sars-CoV-2 variants but they crossed over from animals already able to spread among people. But if it were, for example, a novel virus related to measles then it would be a different story. Thousands of RNA virus species have been identified, and there may be millions, but only 239 infect humans.
| Concepts | Keywords |
|---|---|
| Andes | Cov |
| Bundibugyo | Covid |
| Ebolavirus | Ebolavirus |
| Killed | Example |
| Powerful | Humans |
| List | |
| Pandemic | |
| People | |
| Person | |
| Sars | |
| Spread | |
| Spreading | |
| Virus | |
| Viruses | |
| Year |
Semantics
| Type | Source | Name |
|---|---|---|
| disease | MESH | Aids |
| disease | MESH | emergency |
| disease | MESH | bite |
| disease | MESH | infection |
| disease | MESH | Rabies |
| disease | MESH | measles |
| pathway | KEGG | Measles |
| disease | MESH | mumps |
| disease | MESH | rubella |
| disease | MESH | mpox |