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The threat from animal pathogens transmissible to humans is at an
unprecedented increase worldwide. In the US, epidemics of Lyme disease, West
Nile virus, and now the potential for pandemic avian influenza have revealed
critical weaknesses in our knowledge of how these diseases emerge, spread,
and are maintained in nature. Microbial pathogens transmitted from birds to
humans, either directly or through intermediate vectors (ticks and
mosquitoes), are of particular concern because birds are ubiquitous, locally
abundant, and can move pathogens over long distances quickly. The
involvement of birds in public health threats to humans poses significant
management dilemmas for wildlife biologists and human disease
epidemiologists that are infrequently addressed together.
The objective of this interdisciplinary forum is to provide an opportunity
for cross-fertilization among the disciplines of microbiology, ornithology,
entomology, epidemiology, and conservation biology in order to identify
needs for advancing efforts to understand and mitigate disease risk caused
by microbial pathogens humans share with avian wildlife.
Nine presentations are planned for this one day event. Each presentation
will be followed by a question and discussion period with audience
participation. Admission to the Forum is free and open to the Yale community
and the public.
This forum is sponsored by the Yale Institute for Biospheric Studies Center
for EcoEpidemiology and is part of a series of interdisciplinary forums
intended to bridge the intellectual gap between the natural and medical
sciences in order to address critical common issues. A Forum on Climate and
Disease was held in December 2005 and a Forum on Biodiversity and Human
Health is planned for next fall.
TALKS
To view video of talks, click on the titles below.
The videos require Real Player and a broadband connection
Morning Session 8:30 am to 12:00 pm
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS
Derek Briggs, Yale Institute for Biospheric Studies
KEYNOTE ADDRESS:
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION OF INFLUENZA A VIRUSES
Robert Webster, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
AVIAN RESERVOIRS OF WEST NILE VIRUS
Nicholas Komar, CDC Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases
AVIAN ZOONOSES IN EUROPE
Bjorn Olsen, Kalmar University, Sweden
BIRDS AND LYME DISEASE
Durland Fish, Yale School of Medicine
Afternoon Session 1:00 pm to 4:30 pm
AVIAN HOSTS OF MOSQUITO VECTORS
Theodore Andreadis, Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station
AVIAN SENTINELS FOR ARBOVIRUSES
Jonathan Day, Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory
MONITORING BIRD POPULATIONS
John S. Sauer, USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
MIGRATORY CONNECTIVITY AND MOVEMENT OF AVIAN DISEASE
Peter Marra, Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center
AVIAN INFLUENZA AND WILDLIFE CONSERVATION:
BENEFITS OF A “ONE HEALTH” APPROACH
William Karesh, Wildlife Conservation Society
CLOSING REMARKS
James E. Childs, Yale School of Medicine
Forum Poster |
