Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli (ESBL-Ec) significantly impacts patient outcomes, and has gained global attention. This study employed whole-genome sequencing to profile ESBL-Ec isolated from animals, humans and environmental sources in Ghana. E. coli isolated from environmental (rivers, slaughter slabs, wastewater samples), human (blood and faecal samples) and animal (caecal samples) specimens were confirmed using MALDI-TOF MS. ESBL production was detected using the double disk diffusion method. Whole genome sequencing was performed on ESBL-positive isolates. Using bioinformatics tools, sequence data analysis was performed to determine antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and virulence genes, plasmid replicons and genetic relatedness of ESBL-positive isolates. The sequenced ESBL-Ec isolates (n = 190) originated from the environment (60.5
In recent years, there has been growing interest in the integration of One Health (OH) principles to better monitor the occurrence of zoonotic infectious agents and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). However, the added value of applying the OH approach to surveillance programs has rarely been formally evaluated, making it difficult to identify and document best practices. The aim of this study was to assess OH integration within the Canadian Integrated Program for Antibiotic Resistance Surveillance (CIPARS), a national surveillance program established in Canada in 2002 to monitor antimicrobial use (AMU) and AMR along the food chain. Two evaluation tools were used: (1) the OH-ness assessment tool of the Network for Evaluation of One Health (NEOH) framework and, (2) the Evaluation of Collaboration for Surveillance (EcoSur). Data were collected using desktop review, group discussions (n = 2) and complementary individual interviews (n = 9) with CIPARS team members. The results were shared and validated by the participants. The OH-ness index from the NEOH tool was 0.53, suggesting a moderate integration of OH principles overall. Both infrastructural and operational dimensions scored between 0.6 and 0.8, demonstrating an efficient conceptualization of the program to meet its objectives as well as effective teamwork. However, the assessment revealed a lack of integration of different disciplines within the core team and of the environment component in surveillance activities. Scores from the ECoSur tool were higher for the quality of collaboration between sectors for operations (82
Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) is a rare but always fatal neurological complication of measles, associated with persistent measles virus (MeV) infection of the central nervous system (CNS). MeV is detected in the brains of deceased SSPE patients as hypermutated viral genomes, which often contain premature stop codons in the matrix (M) gene and encode a hyperfusogenic fusion (F) protein. As a result, infected cells in the CNS cannot produce virions but rather transmit the viral ribonucleoprotein from cell-to-cell in a slow but progressive manner, which ultimately results in widespread MeV infection of the brain. However, our understanding of the pathogenesis of SSPE is constrained by the lack of animal models combined with a clinically silent incubation period of several years. In a recent publication in PNAS, Daniel Roji et al. analysed animal morbillivirus sequences detected in the brains of persistently infected hosts, including a lynx (canine distemper virus, CDV), two seals (phocine distemper virus, PDV) and a dolphin (cetacean morbillivirus, CeMV). The authors describe that the morbillivirus sequences detected in these animals contained unique mutational signatures. The CDV, CeMV and one of the PDV sequences encoded nonfunctional M proteins and hyperfusogenic F proteins, reminiscent of the mutational profile of MeV detected in SSPE patients. Therefore, the authors conclude that human and animal morbilliviruses associated with chronic neurological infections share key genotypic and phenotypic traits, and that thorough analysis of naturally occurring animal morbillivirus infections could improve our understanding of SSPE pathogenesis. The comparison of neurological complications associated with human and animal morbillivirus infections as described by Daniel Roji et al. provides a unique One Health approach to understanding the drivers of SSPE. These findings may support the development of early diagnostics or an animal model for SSPE, providing an opportunity to test novel intervention strategies.
Avian influenza A(H5N1) remains a major zoonotic and pandemic concern because of its extensive circulation in birds, repeated spillover into mammals, and capacity to cause illness in humans ranging from asymptomatic infection or conjunctivitis to fatal pneumonia. The detection of clade 2.3.4.4b H5N1 in United States dairy cattle in 2024 created a persistent animal-human interface that required coordinated action across public health, animal health, occupational health, agriculture, and food safety. This review critically examines the role of the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in H5N1 surveillance, laboratory diagnosis, genomic risk assessment, clinical guidance, occupational protection, communication, and pandemic preparedness. A structured narrative review was conducted using PubMed and authoritative sources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The search covered January 1996 through 24 July 2026. Sources were screened for direct relevance and synthesized by predefined thematic domains. Table 1 presents a focused evidence map of key H5N1-specific studies and reports. The CDC response uses surveillance systems, monitoring of exposed persons, public-health laboratory testing, rapid H5 subtyping, sequencing, antigenic characterization, and antiviral-susceptibility assessment. Human infections associated with the United States cattle and poultry outbreaks were predominantly mild and commonly involved conjunctivitis or upper-respiratory symptoms, although severe and fatal disease occurred. Preventive measures include occupational PPE guidance, monitoring and testing of exposed persons, infection-control recommendations, risk communication, and antiviral prophylaxis following selected high-risk exposures.” Important limitations include uneven testing, incomplete participation by exposed workers, barriers to personal protective equipment use, rapidly changing surveillance data, and uncertainty regarding the frequency of mild or asymptomatic infection. The reviewed serosurveys also indicated that symptom-based surveillance can miss infections in exposed workers. The CDC-centered response has expanded detection and preparedness, but its effectiveness depends on sustained One Health coordination, timely animal-outbreak control, accessible worker-centered testing, transparent data sharing, and continuous evaluation of viral evolution, diagnostic performance, antiviral susceptibility, and candidate vaccine-virus match and the need for stronger integration of animal and human data.
SARS-CoV-2 infection has been reported in susceptible domestic, farmed, and wildlife species following exposure to infected humans. In South Africa, ecotourism and close human–animal contact may increase the risk for reverse zoonotic transmission, but animal surveillance remains limited. We conducted case-based investigations of 92 animals from Gauteng, Limpopo, Western Cape and Mpumalanga Provinces in South Africa between 2021 and 2025 for SARS-CoV-2 infections. Cases were selected based on respiratory signs, unexplained death, or opportunistic sampling of high-risk species. Respiratory specimens were tested for SARS-CoV-2 RNA by RT‒PCR, and serum for SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies. Specimens were additionally screened for other coronaviruses, influenza A virus, and paramyxoviruses. RT‒PCR-positive specimens were subjected to genomic sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. Humans with close contact with positive cases were also tested. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in 4/92 animals (4.3
