Scientists Are Already Preparing for the Next Pandemic
What’s more, they’re looking to eradicate infectious diseases entirely
“Unless we’re screened for coronaviruses and then shot out into space, leaving all other animals and nature behind, we’re going to have coronaviruses.” So says Benjamin Neuman, PhD, chief virologist at Texas A&M’s Global Health Research Complex. Neuman is no stranger to coronaviruses — he has been working with them for decades. His expertise even landed him a spot on the international committee that named SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. SARS-CoV-2 is the most recent member of the coronavirus family, which also includes the viruses that caused the SARS and MERS outbreaks.
The world’s changing climate and growing population increases the future threat of coronaviruses, and it’s a threat that Neuman doesn’t take lightly. Some viruses are very simple, he says. At the other end of the spectrum, there are coronaviruses. “These are viruses that are good at stealth, at sneaking around a cell and cutting the wires before any alarm bells start to ring.” It’s not surprising, he adds, that coronaviruses are found in all kinds of animals, including bats, pangolins, and humans.
