The current Ebola outbreak most likely started when a human patient zero came into contact with an infected animal, and the hunt for origin of Ebola and other exotic diseases can often take researchers to the far reaches or the world. It may be, however, that scientists should be keeping a closer eye on pathogens living at home. A study of 133 rats captured from five different locations around New York City has uncovered at least 18 new viruses not previously known to science.
In addition to e. coli, salmonella, and the Seoul hantavirus (known in Asia but new to the US), researchers from Columbia University isolated the new viruses, including two closely resembling hepatitis C:
“We found an extraordinary diversity of bacteria, and a large number of unknown viruses,” said Dr. Dan Lipkin, director of the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. “Rats are sentinels for human disease. They’re all over the city: uptown, downtown, underground.”
The researchers have not yet determined if any of the unknown bugs can be transmitted to humans, but experts are alarmed… “This is a recipe for a public health nightmare,” Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance, told The New York Times.
[via The Verge]