Preparedness needs research: How fundamental science and international collaboration accelerated the response to COVID-19

The first cluster of patients suffering from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was identified on December 21, 2019, and as of July 29, 2020, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections have been linked with 664,333 deaths and number at least 16,932,996 worldwide. Unprecedented in global societal impact, the COVID-19 pandemic has tested local, national, and international preparedness for viral outbreaks to the limits. Just as it will be vital to identify missed opportunities and improve contingency planning for future outbreaks, we must also highlight key successes and build on them. Concomitant to the emergence of a novel viral disease, there is a ‘research and development gap’ that poses a threat to the overall pace and quality of outbreak response during its most crucial early phase. Here, we outline key components of an adequate research response to novel viral outbreaks using the example of SARS-CoV-2. We highlight the exceptional recent progress made in fundamental science, resulting in the fastest scientific response to a major infectious disease outbreak or pandemic. We underline the vital role of the international research community, from the implementation of diagnostics and contact tracing procedures to the collective search for vaccines and antiviral therapies, sustained by unique information sharing efforts

Virus discovery in farm animals:Uncovering hidden viral threats and their role in disease

As humanity has expanded, viral diseases have persistently accompanied both animals and humans. Especially, the current environmental challenges, biodiversity loss and habitat fragmentation, exhaustive agriculture practices and intensive livestock farming, have caused an excessive interference of human activities in natural ecosystems providing more chances of human–animal interactions and zoonotic spillover. In this thesis, the attention has been devoted to infectious diseases affecting livestock. In such an interconnected world, livestock is not only vital for maintaining food supplies, but can also be a reservoir of future pandemics. Today’s livestock industry faces a diverse number of viral diseases, presenting unprecedent diversity and complexity. While more prominent viral diseases are reportable to national and international agencies, newly emerged, non-reportable viruses have established themselves as significant economic and pathogenic threats. The challenge in monitoring novel and emerging livestock viruses is compounded by asymptomatic presentations, limitations in diagnostic capabilities, and the complexity of viral interactions. Moreover, many emerging diseases cannot be explained with the traditional postulates of virus causation, wherein only one pathogen should be the cause of only one disease. This thesis presents an analysis of these contemporary challenges drawing from real-world examples. In particular, four areas of virus research are explored: the discovery and analysis of novel viruses, understanding how these viruses spread, examining their evolutionary changes, and determining their role in disease causation