Prominent U.S. Tuberculosis Expert and One Health Leader Dies

Dr. Charles O. Thoen, a veterinarian internationally recognized for his extensive knowledge and expertise in the scientific field of tuberculosis and an avid One Health leader/advocate died unexpectedly Monday, May 8, 2017.  Notably, Dr. Thoen earned his PhD degree following a fellowship in microbiology research at the renowned Mayo Clinic graduate school of medicine (1968-1971): University of Minnesota.  He had previously received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree from U of M in 1961.

Dr. Thoen was a valued friend and strong ally of the One Health Initiative Autonomous Pro Bono team.  This brilliant, kind and decent man shall be sorely missed by his friends, colleagues and the global public health scientific world.

A fitting in memoriam to him and for his family, is the following beautifully prepared pertinent article:

Iowa State University – College of Veterinary Medicine https://vetmed.iastate.edu/story/charles-thoen

A Man Among Beasts

Editor's Note: It is with great sadness that we report the death of Dr. Charles Thoen, professor of veterinary microbiology and preventive medicine, on Monday, May 8, 2017.

During his half-century- long career in veterinary medicine, Dr. Charles Thoen has worked with food- producing animals, companion animals, nonhuman primates, elk, buffalo and even elephants. Early in his career he was a veterinary medical epidemiologist for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). He later chaired the department of Veterinary Microbiology and Preventive Medicine at Iowa State University, International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease Scientific Committee on Tuberculosis in Animals, and World Health Organization Committee on Animal Tuberculosis.

He’s been a consultant to the Smithsonian Institution, National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Pan American Health Organization, National Aquarium in Baltimore, International Elephant Foundation, and agricultural departments in the United States and countries including Egypt, New Zealand, South Africa, Colombia and Serbia.

Dr. Thoen has served as president of the American Veterinary Epidemiology Society and was invited by the World Veterinary Association to provide content for its educational portal on tuberculosis (TB) in animals and humans. In 2014 he received the Distinguished Research Alumnus award from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine for his accomplishments on TB and clinically significant pathogenic mycobacteria. He’s been an editor of seven textbooks on infectious disease that are used by scientists worldwide.

He credits his training at Mayo Clinic for providing him with research skills, and a childhood pet for sparking his lifelong interest in infectious diseases in animals and humans.

Dr. Thoen grew up on a farm in Harmony−Lanesboro, Minnesota. When his dog, Trixie, contracted an infectious disease and died, the 10-year-old boy wanted to learn more about what killed his pet. He talked to the local veterinarian and “was hooked,” he says.

Dr. Thoen recently edited the third edition of Zoonotic Tuberculosis: Mycobacterium bovis and Other Pathogenic Mycobacteria, a comprehensive review of the state-of-the-art control and elimination of infections caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex in animals and humans.

Intermingling of the species

“Infectious diseases can be transmitted from animals to humans, and from humans back to animals,” says Dr. Thoen. TB in particular causes disease in humans, elephants and several nonhuman primates. He says this information is especially important because TB is a re-emerging disease in both humans and animals worldwide and is a risk when they intermingle.

“Advanced TB is highly contagious and a significant concern to public health officials,” says Dr. Thoen. “Molecular techniques can trace outbreaks, including genotyping the TB organisms to identify strains and determine if isolates from human patients are similar to those of animals they were exposed to — or vice versa. If the isolates are the same, we can suspect transmission from one species to another, which helps identify the source of infection.”

Employees at animal parks and animal training centers have contracted the disease from elephants and primates. TB isn’t common among U.S. cattle but does occur in cattle imported from Mexico, exposing domestic cattle to the disease.

“Suspected animals are tested, but they only shed the organism in advanced stages of disease, so tests have limitations,” he says. “Public health officials are very concerned about animal-to-human transmission. People who come in contact with elephants may be at risk of contracting TB. Infected animals that expel air in proximity to people can infect them. Some studies show that 13 percent of captive elephants are infected with TB.”

Elephant man

When TB was first diagnosed in captive elephants in 1996, Dr. Thoen worked with a national group of elephant owners and the USDA to set up guidelines for testing, treatment and monitoring the disease. It was the start of 20 years of working with elephants. Some of his trainees became pioneers in the process of collecting samples for testing from the inside of the animals’ trunks — similar to a sputum sample. His team also determined the drug treatment protocols for elephants infected with TB.

“Initially the drug is given orally in grape juice, but elephants quickly lose interest in it,” he says. “We developed a suppository pack, which is now the standard treatment for uncooperative elephants.”

Costly treatment — in dollars and death

Some strains of TB in both humans and animals are resistant to two or more first-line drugs, and others are resistant to multiple drugs. The cost of treating TB is considerable. According to Dr. Thoen, in humans it’s $20,000 for a normal strain of TB and $135,000 to $400,000 for drug- resistant strains, with no guarantee — drug-resistant cases are often fatal. Treating infected animals is just as costly — $100,000 over 18 months for an elephant and as much as $400,000 if it is extensively drug-resistant.

“When an outbreak occurs in other animal populations, we don’t treat the disease,” says Dr. Thoen. “Instead, we remove the animals from the population and do follow- up tests for three and five or more years in those who were exposed.”

Dr. Thoen points out that when TB occurs in developing countries, it’s often not treated in humans, let alone animals, due to the high cost, which contributes to the spread of the disease. Some experts fear TB in animals could lead to the extinction of endangered species.

Dr. Thoen is an advocate for the One Health initiative and has authored content on its educational portal. One Health recognizes that human health, animal health and the environment are inextricably linked and encourages worldwide interdisciplinary collaboration in health care for humans, animals and the environment to defend the health and well-being of all species.

“Tuberculosis doesn’t know if it’s in an animal or a human and doesn’t care who it infects next,” he says. “We need better diagnostic tests and procedures.”

Reprinted from Mayo Clinic Alumni Magazine, Issue 3, pp 28 to 30.  2016. electronic Alumni magazine

New Online Biology Dictionary includes One Health Reference

biologydictionary.net

 “Biology is the study of living things. It is broken down into many fields, reflecting the complexity of life from the atoms and molecules of biochemistry to the interactions of millions of organisms in ecology. This biology dictionary is here to help you learn about all sorts of biology terms, principles, and life forms. Search by individual topic using the alphabetized menu below, or search by field of study using the menu on the left.”

See: "Useful Links" page (https://biologydictionary.net/useful-links/). 

Provided by:

Chris Chen, MD

https://www.chenmed.com/executive-team/christopher-chen-md

CEO of Chen Medical, Co-Founder & Editor of Biologydictionary.net [biologydictionary.net]

Miami, Florida

“... I am an avid reader of onehealthinitiative.com, I found it very helpful!  Recently I've started a related topic project of mine at biologydictionary.net, which aims to provide useful explanations and examples of biology terms to students, teachers and researchers. ...”

First Physician in History to Serve on American Veterinary Epidemiology Society (AVES) Board

May 1, 2017 -- The American Veterinary Epidemiology Society’s (AVES) http://www.avesociety.org/current President and Executive Director, Dr. Craig N. Carter formerly announced today that Dr. Laura H. Kahn http://www.onehealthinitiative.com/publications/LauraKahnBiography%20Feb%202015.pdf accepted an appointment serving on the AVES board of directors.  Dr. Kahn will be the first physician in the history of AVES to serve on the board.  Kahn received the AVES’ highest honor, the prestigious “Gold Headed Cane” award at the American Veterinary Medical Association’s (AVMA) annual meeting/convention in San Antonio, Texas (USA) on August 8, 2016 https://goo.gl/GG2mpC.  She is a co-founder of the One Health Initiative team (2006-7) and website (October 2008) https://goo.gl/yEXH5N.  

Dr. Carter also announced the inclusion on the AVES Executive Board of the prominent and extraordinary veterinarian, Dr. W. Ron DeHaven https://www.avma.org/About/Governance/Leadership/Pages/AVMA-Officers-Dr-W-Ron-DeHaven.aspx, a retired CEO and Executive Vice President of the AVMA.  DeHaven retired from his position with AVMA in 2016.  Prior to that he spent more than two decades with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, most recently as the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) administrator and chief veterinary officer for the United States.  DeHaven was also a recipient of the AVES Gold Headed Cane Award on August 8, 2016.

With the additions of Laura H. Kahn, MD, MPH, MPP and W. Ron DeHaven, DVM, MBA, the AVES board is now comprised of President Craig N. Carter, DVM, PhD http://goo.gl/n4wi3s, Immediate Past President, Charles O. Thoen, DVM, PhD https://goo.gl/F6bJ9s, Past President, Lonnie King, DVM, MS, MPA http://goo.gl/T8jb8T, Saul T. Wilson, DVM, MPH https://goo.gl/QWMAfO, Bruce Kaplan, DVM http://goo.gl/KujQkP, and William Stokes, DVM http://goo.gl/IqVy8d. 

About these recent appointments, Dr. Carter said, “we  are extremely proud to announce that these two new Board members were appointed during our last meeting on April 18, 2017.  Dr. Ron DeHaven’s many years of creative and strong governmental and AVMA leadership experience will be extremely valuable in furthering the goals and mission of the AVES.”  Carter noted that, “physician Dr. Laura Kahn, is a co-founding member of the One Health Initiative and has recently released a book entitled One Health and the Politics of Antimicrobial Resistance published by the Johns Hopkins University Press which explores the realities of how antimicrobial resistance poses a major risk to both human and animal health”.  Carter said, “Kahn’s devotion to the One Health philosophy makes her a perfect fit to serve on the AVES Board of Directors.  Both DeHaven and Kahn will significantly help in our goals of improving animal health, human health, epidemiology and One Health.”

World Health Organization (WHO) - See full notice: http://www.who.int/features/qa/one-health/en/

“One Health

April 2017

What is 'One Health'?

'One Health' is an approach to designing and implementing programmes, policies, legislation and research in which multiple sectors communicate and work together to achieve better public health outcomes.

The areas of work in which a One Health approach is particularly relevant include food safety, the control of zoonoses (diseases that can spread between animals and humans, such as flu, rabies and Rift Valley Fever), and combatting antibiotic resistance (when bacteria change after being exposed to antibiotics and become more difficult to treat).

Why do we need a One Health approach?

Many of the same microbes infect animals and humans, as they share the eco-systems they live in. Efforts by just one sector cannot prevent or eliminate the problem. For instance, rabies in humans is effectively prevented only by targeting the animal source of the virus (for example, by vaccinating dogs).

The composition of seasonal flu vaccines for humans is informed by which flu strains are circulating in animals. Drug-resistant microbes can be transmitted between animals and humans through direct contact between animals and humans or through contaminated food, so to effectively contain it, a well-coordinated approach in humans and in animals is required.

Who makes the One Health approach work?

Many professionals with a range of expertise who are active in different sectors, such as public health, animal health, plant health and the environment, should join forces to support One Health approaches.

To effectively detect, respond to, and prevent outbreaks of zoonoses and food safety problems, epidemiological data and laboratory information should be shared across sectors. Government officials, researchers and workers across sectors at the local, national, regional and global levels should implement joint responses to health threats.

WHO works closely with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) to promote multi-sectoral responses to food safety hazards, risks from zoonoses, and other public health threats at the human-animal-ecosystem interface and provide guidance on how to reduce these risks.”

Google Alert – One Health:

Homeland Preparedness News – “New model needed for public health response, former CDC director says”

Friday, April 21, 2017 by Debra Flax

See: https://homelandprepnews.com/biological-threats/22100-new-model-needed-public-health-response-former-cdc-director-says/

New model needed for public health response, former CDC director says

Homeland Preparedness News

New model needed for public health response, former CDC director says ... and adoption of a one-health approach to human and animal disease.

“... Referencing “Deadliest Enemy: Our War Against Killer Germs” — a book written by *Michael Osterholm, director for the Center for Infectious Disease and Policy at the University of Minnesota, and Mark Olshaker – Gerberding discussed an example of a recommended crisis agenda that would comprehensively cover aspects of long-term crisis management. Included in the agenda were tasks, such as development of a “Manhattan Project” for the flu vaccine, establishment of an international organization to address antimicrobial resistance, launch of the Global Alliance for Control of Aedes-transmitted diseases, anticipation of climate-change effects, and adoption of a one-health approach to human and animal disease. ... “

*Dr. Osterholm is a member of the One Health Initiative team’s Honorary Advisory Board http://www.onehealthinitiative.com/advBoard.php.

EXAMPLE OF A VISIONARY “ONE HEALTH” PHYSICIAN ACTIVIST/ADVOCATE

Gregory C. Gray, MD, MPH, FIDSA, Professor, Medicine, Environmental Health and Global Health

Professor, Duke University School of Medicine, Duke Infectious Diseases & Duke Global Health Institute, Durham, North Carolina (USA) and Program in Emerging Infectious Diseases Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore. Formerly, Director, One Health Center of Excellence for Research & Training, Professor Department of Environmental and Global Health, College of Public Health and Health Professions, and Infectious Diseases and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida (USA).

(919) 684-1032
gregory.gray@duke.edu

Visit Website Download CV

A One Health viewpoint...

PHYSICIANS in the One Health Vanguard!

The international One Health movement (formerly called One Medicine) cannot flourish without medical doctors (i.e. physicians).  In reality, their leaders fostered it historically...in collaboration(s) with veterinary medical doctors (i.e. veterinarians) and other prominent health scientist-research professionals.

Notable 19^th and early 20^th century One Health physicians include:

Sir William Osler (1849-1919), “Father of Modern Medicine”, one of the four founding professors of Johns Hopkins Hospital.  Among several early associations with veterinary medicine and veterinarians, in 1873, Osler, who had recently received his medical degree from McGill University, left Canada to study with physician Dr. Rudolf Virchow [1821-1902] in Berlin. Virchow impressed upon the young Osler the importance of the autopsy and scientific inquiry in the practice of medicine. Osler returned to Canada in 1874, where he established veterinary pathology as an academic discipline in a North American school of veterinary medicine.

Sir John McFadyean (1853-1941), “Founder Modern Veterinary Research”, a remarkable veterinarian and physician https://goo.gl/5qq8BB, founded the Journal of Comparative Pathology & Therapeutics, built bridges across human and veterinary medical fields in infectious diseases and comparative medicine.  In addition to his degree in veterinary medicine, McFadyean sought to learn the newest and best in science, which led him to enroll at the Faculties of Medicine and Science of Edinburgh University where he earned his human medical degree. Notable for challenging the celebrated German physician and pioneering microbiologist known as the founder of modern bacteriology who gave the first description of the tubercle bacillus in 1882 and surprisingly had stated that no precautions were needed to be taken against milk or flesh from cattle afflicted with tuberculosis because bovine TB differed from the infection found in humans.  McFadyean was subsequently proven right.

Theobald Smith, MD (1859-1934), widely considered to be America's first internationally significant medical research scientist, worked under Dr. Daniel E. Salmon, a veterinarian and Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry.  Smith also discovered the bacterial species which would eventually form the genus Salmonella.  With veterinarian Dr. Frederick L. Kilbourne, Smith discovered that the parasite causing cattle fever, Babesia bigemina, was spread by ticks. This was the first demonstration that a biting arthropod could spread disease, and set the stage for physician Walter Reed and his colleagues to prove a few years later that mosquitoes transmit yellow fever.

FYI, a partial list of modern day 20^th and 21^st century visionary “One Health physician” champions and leaders:

ALL PHYSICIANS ARE ENCOURAGED AND URGED TO ACTIVELY JOIN-PARTICIPATE!  Please help us educate/engage your physician colleagues and friends... “One Health implementation will help protect and/or save untold millions of lives in our generation and for those to come.”

Bruce Kaplan, DVM

Contents Manager/Editor One Health Initiative Website

Co-Founder One Health Initiative team [Apr2006-Mar2007]/website [Oct2008]

One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono Team:

Laura H. Kahn, MD, MPH, MPP ▪ Bruce Kaplan, DVM ▪

Thomas P. Monath, MD ▪ Lisa A. Conti, DVM, MPH

https://goo.gl/DP3UY2  

April 7-9, 2017:  8^th Annual CUGH Conference

COMPETITIONS, AWARDS & RECOGNITION

For specific information about awards, please visit this webpage.

3 April2017      For Immediate Release

Contact(s):        Peter Costa, +1 984 500 8593 (USA), pcosta@onehealthcommission.org

SECOND ANNUAL “ONE HEALTH DAY” PLANNED BY THREE INTERNATIONAL ONE HEALTH GROUPS

3 NOVEMBER 2017

2016 ONE HEALTH DAY STUDENT COMPETITION WINNERS ANNOUNCEMENT

The first edition of the global One Health Day, held on 3 November 2016, generated over 150 events in over 35 countries engaging approximately 17,000 participants. Officially launched in April 2016 by three leading international One Health groups, the One Health Commission, the One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono Team, and the One Health Platform Foundation, this initiative has grown into an annual, sustainable platform for One Health supporters around the world.

Today, the three leading global partners launch promotion of the 2017 annual One Health Day campaign, calling upon individuals and groups from around the world to implement One Health educational projects and awareness events under the auspices of One Health Day. Regional One Health Day Spokespersons in Africa, Asia, Oceania, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas will continue to liaise with project teams in their respective regions, while a network of One Health Day Country Ambassadors works within their countries to encourage creation of inspiring events. Anyone, from academia to government to corporate to private individuals can plan and implement a One Health Day Event. The events do not have to fall right on November 3. All events should be registered on the webpage to be promoted on the One Health Day website and represented on the global One Health Day Events map.  Student groups from all disciplines can compete for cash prizes and global recognition. Participating teams can have the One Health Day logo translated into a language of their choice. All promotional materials are freely downloadable from the One Health Day website.

The One Health Day organizing team was very pleased to have received numerous outstanding entries for the three 2016 Student Event Competition awards. Competing groups had to meet a set of criteria and were required to submit a post-event summary. The International Evaluation Committee was impressed with the work of the One Health Day Student teams, and the decision process has hence been challenging. Based on an objective assessment by these internationally recognized One Health leaders, three teams will each be awarded a $5,000 prize. The winning 2016 One Health Day Student Event teams are: University of California at Davis, Washington University at St Louis, Missouri and George Washington University in Washington D.C. Two additional $500 One Health Day Planning Team Special Recognition Awards will go to the teams from Makerere University, Uganda, and the University of Pretoria, South Africa. Student Event awards in 2017 will go to the top event in each of four global regions so students are encouraged to begin planning.

Additional information is available online at www.onehealthday.org

####

About One Health Day

One Health Day answers the urgent need for a One Health trans-disciplinary approach towards solving today’s critical global health challenges. It is a timely initiative that gives scientists and advocates a powerful voice for moving beyond current provincial approaches to emerging zoonotic infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, climate change, environmental pollution, food safety, comparative/ translational medicine and many other problems, to a holistic default way of doing business.

About One Health

One Health is a movement to forge co-equal, all-inclusive collaborations, in both research and applied sciences, between human and animal health arenas, chemical, engineering and social scientists, dentists, nurses, agriculturalists and food producers, wildlife and environmental health specialists and many other related disciplines, assembled under the One Health umbrella. As early as 2010 the World Bank recognized and published documentary evidence supporting benefits of a One Health approach in disease prevention, public health and global security. Today, the One Health approach is being increasingly accepted by numerous major international organizations such as the World Medical Association (WMA), the World Veterinary Association (WVA), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Many other supporting organizations can be found at http://www.onehealthinitiative.com/supporters.php