Every year on July 6, the global health community observes World Zoonoses Day to raise awareness about zoonotic diseases, which are infections that pass from animals to humans. The date marks a profound milestone in public health: the anniversary of July 6, 1885, when Louis Pasteur successfully administered the very first rabies vaccine.
While Pasteur’s breakthrough changed history, the battle against zoonoses is more urgent today than ever before.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 60% of all human infectious diseases are zoonotic. Furthermore, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that 75% of new human pathogens detected over the last three decades originated in animals. From COVID-19 to avian influenza, these threats are accelerating. FAO attributes this rise to a complex web of modern factors: global travel, international trade, intensified agricultural systems, climate change, and increased animal-human interaction in wildlife habitats.
To stop the next pandemic, we cannot afford to play catch-up. We have to see it coming.
The Lungfish Approach: Turning Environmental Signals into Action
This is where the innovative environmental surveillance led by Lungfish researchers becomes vital. Long before a patient steps into a clinic or hospital, pathogens leave distinct genetic traces in our air and water. By capturing these signals early, Lungfish provides communities with a critical head start to inform outbreak responses and deploy resources.
A prime example of this proactive defense is Lungfish’s wastewater surveillance, which has successfully detected several zoonoses, including the H5N1 avian influenza virus.
What sets the Lungfish team apart is our use of metagenomic sequencing. Rather than testing exclusively for known targets, this advanced technique captures all genetic material within a sample. This is a game-changer for public health because traditional diagnostic panels often miss a novel virus simply because no one knows to look for it yet. Metagenomic sequencing ensures that emerging, unidentified threats have nowhere to hide.
Empowering Global Health Through Data Transparency
Robust data is only as powerful as its accessibility. The Lungfish team is committed to rapid, transparent data sharing. We actively collaborate with public health partners across the United States and around the world, making our findings actionable in real time.
To facilitate data sharing, we have developed several public-facing dashboards. Among them is our Species Frequency Dashboard, which analyzes a genetic marker called 12S rRNA in wastewater to map out which animal species are present in a given geographic area. Should a new virus emerge, this information will help scientists and public health officials to rapidly narrow down and identify potential animal hosts. As an example, the Nipah virus is one of the most well-known zoonotic diseases. It first emerged in late 1998 after fruit bats migrated from Indonesia to pig farms in Malaysia, driven from their traditional habitats by severe droughts and forest fires. The virus spilled over from its natural reservoir, fruit bats, to pigs, and then from pigs to humans. People fell ill after contracting the virus, but local health professionals initially thought their illness was caused by Japanese encephalitis, a mosquito-borne disease. It took time to discover the real cause of the outbreak. A tool like the Species Frequency Dashboard could help public health professionals facing a new virus identify the source much faster. By providing an immediate, verified baseline of which species are interacting in a specific area, it eliminates weeks of ecological guesswork and points investigators exactly where to look.
By bridging the gap between biology and public health, the Lungfish team isn’t just monitoring the current landscape. Instead, we are building the early-warning architecture needed to protect global communities from the threats of tomorrow.