The documentary Spillover-Zika, Ebola, and Beyond as produced by Tangled Bank Studios in 2016, delves into some apposite issues in the ongoing fight against the current outbreak of COVID-19. The rebroadcasting of the film by the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) will not only inform the general population but also cause introspection as to what can be done to contain the growing number of spillover viruses from animals. The various strategies used in the management of previous epidemics are essential in curbing the current COVID-19 pandemic. The film reiterates the message that there is no more doubt about the emergence of new human infections from animals; thus, it is high time we upscale our prediction of their emergence and measures to counter them, lest we are caught off-guard.
My initial thoughts about the film are that it foreshadows the possibility of the emergence of a global pandemic arising out of the spillover of viruses from animals to humans. The film states the lack of doubt about animal viruses spilling over to humans; it is only a matter of time. I think the film implicitly foreshadows the current corona outbreak, which has become a global pandemic. I also feel that the film is informative. It provides details about past epidemics that have arisen out of spillover of viruses from animals to humans, the controls used to contain them and scientists’ efforts to anticipate and contain these viruses before they spillover. Through graphics, it shows how human actions such as deforestation, consumption of wild animals, e.g., bats are contributing to the emergence of these zoonotic diseases in humans. I think the film can make humans contemplate their actions and come up with effective control measures against the impending epidemics.
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The details on the Zika virus, as provided in the film, caught my attention. The film, through graphics, personal stories, and explanations by researchers and heads of research bodies, makes a connection between the Zika Virus that emerged in 2015 and the increased cases of infants born with microcephaly. The relationship of the microcephaly condition with the Zika disease was made through conducting a cross-sectional study. The striking details about the Zika virus are the realization of how some viruses which may have caused mild infections in the past may re-emerge with dire consequences such as witnessed in the Zika case in Brazil. Zika had been identified as early as 1947 in Africa, but the associated cases were mild (Tangled Bank Studios, 2016). However, the emergence of Zika in Brazil in 2015 shows the severity of the infection (Tangled Bank Studios, 2016). The congenital transmission of the disease strikes me due to the possibility of having a generation with conditions such as microcephaly in case the disease was to infect a large part of the population.
I would have liked to gain some insight into the coronaviruses. I had hoped that the film would cover some content into the 2002-2003 corona outbreak that led to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The 2003 SARS posed a global spread threat, with about 8000 people being infected and 800 dying out of epidemic (Wilder-Smith et al., 2020). Also, I would have liked to know more about the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) disease in 2012, which was caused by one of the species of the coronavirus (World Health Organization, n.d.). The film only mentions about the MERS virus but does not provide in-depth details about the infection. My desire to have gained insight into these infections is driven by the current epidemic COVID-19, which is caused by a coronavirus species. Details about these epidemics would have helped me to make a quick comparison of these epidemics in terms of severity, transmission, and control measures.
Through watching the film, I gained an in-depth comprehension of some key concepts relating to the control and transmission of zoonotic diseases. The first concept is the vulnerability of the human populace to contract zoonotic diseases. One would think that zoonotic diseases are only restricted to animals. However, the film explains how increased human-animal interactions are making humans predisposed to contract novel infections never witnessed before. The human population has exponentially increased. The film depicts how an increased human population has led to activities such as deforestation and occupancy of areas initially inhabited by animals. Animals appear to have been displaced or else they are living right next to humans. The increased interactions increase the possibility of viruses jumping species and causing infectious diseases. This phenomenon is illustrated in the film through the Nipar virus infections, which have been traced to contamination of date palm’s sap by bats. My thoughts on getting rid of the animals are countered by the film’s explanation of the critical role that they play in ecosystem balance. Thus, it is upon human beings to work around a solution that reduces the risk of spillover diseases without getting rid of the animals.
The second concept is the importance of contact tracing in the control of the transmission of infectious diseases. Not only does contact tracing help reduce the spread of the diseases, but it also helps to identify the origin of the outbreak. The film explains how the contraction of infectious diseases by one person can spread to several other people if the disease is transmissible through human to human contact. Thus, if the individuals with whom an infected individual had come into contact with are identified soonest, it can help to control the wide spreading of the disease. Isolation of the infected individuals helps to control any further spread of the disease. This concept was effectively used to prevent the global spread of the Ebola Virus in 2014 despite having hit one of the most populated cities in Africa, Lagos. The concept of contact tracing is quite relevant to the ongoing fight against COVID-19. The use of technological applications using the Global Positioning System (GPS) is quite crucial in this endeavor. Similarly, the established contacts, much like family trees, can help trace the origin of infection. The film depicts how contact tracing determined the source of the Zaire Ebola Virus to a Guinean boy who had possibly interacted with a bat in 2013.
The third crucial concept that I gained is the importance of in-depth research studies to identify various pathogens in animals that have the possibility of causing infectious diseases in humans. Prior identification of the pathogens before they because infections can help to model the risk of infections in humans. Possible treatments and vaccines can be easily prepared when the causative agents are already known. The film details the works of Dr. Jonna Mazet, who, together with her team in the PREDICT project, have helped identify about 800 previously unknown virus species (Tangled Bank Studios, 2016). Rigorous research can aid in anticipating disease outbreaks, thus helping in the prevention of the development of a global pandemic.
By using a combination of graphics, narration, personal stories, and opinions from researches and heads of research bodies, the film explores the concept of spillover of different viruses from animals to humans and causing various infections. In the wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the film informs the general populace of various effective widespread control measures. The film is quite thought-provoking on what humans can do to limit the increasing number of spillover viruses. The spillover of these viruses is bound to occur; thus, humans need to anticipate their emergence and adequately prepare to counter them.
References
Tangled Bank Studios. (2016). Spillover – Zika, Ebola & Beyond | PBS . Pbs.org. Retrieved from https://www.pbs.org/spillover-zika-ebola-beyond/home/ .
Wilder-Smith, A., Chiew, C. J., & Lee, V. J. (2020). Can we contain the COVID-19 outbreak with the same measures as for SARS? The Lancet Infectious Diseases .
World Health Organization. Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) . World Health Organization. Retrieved 8 April 2020, from https://www.who.int/emergencies/mers-cov/en/.
