International expert group will deal with animal and human health

The President of the Friedrich-Leffler Institute (FLI), Prof. Dr. Thomas C. Mettenleiter, and Prof. Dr. Wanda Marcotter, Head of the Center for Viral Zoonoses, University of Pretoria, South Africa, have been appointed founding Co-Chairs of a new international expert group, One Health.

The 26-member One Health High Level Panel of Experts (OHHLEP) was formally established on May 20. The World Health Organization (WHO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) have called for applications to join the group. It will provide scientific advice to four partner organizations at the intersection of human, animal health and the environment.

The Covid-19 pandemic has once again highlighted how closely linked human, animal and environmental health is, and therefore the importance of a One Health approach to global health. 

The focus is on the interaction between humans, animals and ecosystems and the early recognition of future health threats. In addition, it is necessary to determine the factors that influence the spread of pathogens from animals to humans. The aim is to develop a global agenda to reduce the risk of pandemics.

The constituent assembly of OHHLEP was held on 17 and 18 May. Here it was decided to create four working groups that will deal with the implementation of One Health approaches, comprehensive interaction of existing and planned activities, surveillance, early detection and prevention of zoonotic infections, as well as identification and risk assessment of influencing factors. “If we take this approach as a basis, we will achieve not only short-term change, but also sustainable improvement, which includes biodiversity, climate change, food security and social equity. Our goal is to create a healthy environment for everyone,” added virologist and bat expert Wanda Marcotter.

The four founding partners required impartiality and independence in addition to professional experience for a successful appointment. In order to cover as many aspects of the complex area of ​​One Health as possible, the Call for Proposals considered different areas of expertise. In addition to zoonoses (infectious diseases transmitted between humans and animals), biodiversity, epidemiology and public health, they also included social welfare and economics, informatics and modeling, and climate and the environment. In selecting 26 members from over 700 applications, the founding partners took into account experience as well as geographic distribution and gender balance. OHHLEP experts were appointed for an initial period of two years, with the possibility of reappointment.