Field in Focus: Predicting Pandemics

Dr. Marc Valitutto is a wildlife veterinarian with SCBI’s Global Health Program and is the global lead for PREDICT in Myanmar. He coordinates and implements wildlife health studies and training in Asia, and his research focuses on One Health related topics, specifically evaluating the transmission of zoonotic diseases from wildlife to humans in Myanmar.

Dr. Kyaw Yan Naing Tun is Myanmar’s PREDICT field veterinary surveillance officer. He is responsible for managing and training a team of Myanmar veterinarians and field assistants for the collection of animals and their samples in the field. He previously worked as a  veterinarian for the Nay Pyi Taw Zoo after graduating from veterinary school with a Ph.D. in veterinary nutrition.

Dr. Jennifer Kishbaugh is the Smithsonian’s 2017-2018 Judy and John W. McCarter, Jr. Global Health Veterinary Intern. She leads a pilot project to track Indian flying foxes using GPS collars, alongside the PREDICT Myanmar team.

Linno Cave is home to at least four bat species. So far, the researchers have successfully caught and taken samples from wrinkle-lipped bats and cave nectar bats. The bats are given sugar water before being released to ensure they have the energy to continue their flight — just like a person might receive a sugary juice after a blood drive.

Myanmar scientists at collaborating government laboratories in Yangon analyze the samples from each research site for four viral families:

Scientists sequence the viruses they detect in animals to determine their pathogenicity, or ability to cause disease, in humans. Any viruses detected in samples from animals or humans are also analyzed for pandemic potential. If a virus is considered a concern, the researchers work with Myanmar’s government to determine the immediacy of the issue and whether a response is necessary.

Groups of macaques congregate just outside the cave where visitors often feed them by hand. The team uses a unique method to collect DNA samples from these monkeys.

Sample collection can be challenging, and weather complications can damper the work. PREDICT guidelines require full personal protective equipment, which can be especially cumbersome in intense heat and rain.

At times, it may also be difficult to ask local participants to wear the protective equipment when they have long interacted with these animals without it. Ultimately, the team’s goal is to put as little stress as possible on their partners in the field, the local community members they interact with and the animals they sample.

With help from experts at the Smithsonian’s Movement of Life initiative, the GHP team is tracking Indian flying foxes. Also called megabats, flying foxes are some of the largest bats in the world. They provide vital ecosystem services, spreading seeds and pollinating as they travel from tree to tree feeding on fruit. But they are also associated with dangerous diseases, including rabies, influenza, Nipah virus and Hendra virus.

To track flying foxes, researchers designed a special GPS collar that is lightweight, easily fastened and accounts for the bats’ unique physiology (like flying horizontally and roosting upside down).

The team has already discovered where the bats go to feed. Now, they are gathering site-specific information, such as what types of trees are present, if the area is forest or farmland, and if other animals or people live nearby.

The health of humans, animals and the environment is inextricably linked. A better understanding of the bats’ movement will help inform future conservation strategies that protect both the bats and the people they come into contact with.

As the Global Health Team enters their fifth and final year of the PREDICT project, they are sharing data with local communities and making recommendations to reduce risk. Through education and collaboration, they hope that the people of Myanmar will have the resources and desire to continue investigating disease surveillance and prevention long after the Smithsonian team leaves.