Connect Sign InEmerging and Zoonotic Infections
With globalization of food products, pan-global human travel, and changing vector ranges for insects that carry disease, the rise of emerging and/or zoonotic infections has never been more prominent. Many recently emerging pathogens are zoonotic viruses and their emergence in new parts of the world is alarming and a challenge to medicine. Viruses such as Zika virus, chikungunya virus, MERS coronavirus, and ebola will be discussed, and the emerging enteric pathogen, Cyclospora will also be reviewed. A focus on sociopolitical as well as epidemiological factors will be considered for this topic, as both have significant implications in the emergence and persistence of these various pathogens.
Dr. Couturier is an associate professor of pathology at the University Of Utah School of Medicine. He received his PhD in medical microbiology and immunology with a specialty in bacteriology from the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Dr. Couturier served as a research associate/post-doctoral fellow at the Alberta Provincial Laboratory for Public Health and completed a medical microbiology fellowship (ABMM) at the University of Utah. His research interests include Helicobacter pylori diagnostics and population prevalence, in particular identifying populations with increased risk of infection and reduced access to medical care. Dr. Couturier also has a research focus aimed at developing improved diagnostics for emerging agents of infectious gastroenteritis. He is board certified in medical microbiology, and a member of the American Society for Microbiology and Infectious Disease Society of America.
