Science | Preventing Pandemics

Scientific Publications

Browse key publications related to prevention at the source

Coalition publications

Interventions to Reduce Risk for Pathogen Spillover and Early Disease Spread to Prevent Outbreaks, Epidemics, and Pandemics

N. Vora et al., March 2023, Emerging Infectious Diseases

In this report, coalition members and the coalition Secretariat summarize expert opinions on how to implement actions to reduce the risk of spillover.

These actions include i) stopping the clearing and degradation of tropical and subtropical forests, ii) improving health and economic security of communities living in emerging infectious disease hotspots, iii) enhancing biosecurity in animal husbandry, iv) shutting down or strictly regulating wildlife markets and trade, and v) expanding pathogen surveillance.

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Want to prevent pandemics? Stop spillovers

N. Vora et al., May 2022, Nature

In this comment, coalition advisor, members, and others, outline why spillover prevention is crucial and the policy opportunities available to us.

They outline four key recommendations to prevent future pandemics:

Protecting tropical and subtropical forests
Banning or strictly regulating commercial markets and trade of live wild animals that pose a public-health risk, both domestically and internationally
Improving biosecurity when dealing with farmed animals
Improving people’s health and economic security, particularly in hotspots for the emergence of infectious diseases

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The costs and benefits of primary prevention of zoonotic pandemics

A. Bernstein et al., February 2022, Science Advances

In this paper, coalition advisor, members, and others, found that taking actions to prevent pandemics at the source would cost less than 1/20th the value of lives lost each year to emerging viral zoonoses.

More specifically , they focused on three key actions to prevent future pandemics:

Better surveillance of pathogen spillover
Better management of wildlife trade
Substantial reduction in deforestation

Their analysis clearly demonstrate the cost-efficiency of implementing pre-spillover interventions rather than solely focusing on pandemic preparedness and response.

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Report of scientific task force on preventing pandemics

Dr. Yewande Alimi, Dr. Aaron Bernstein, Dr. Jonathan Epstein et al., August 2021, Harvard C-CHANGE

The coalition’s academic affiliates at Harvard C-CHANGE and the Harvard Global Health Institute recently hosted a Scientific Task Force to Prevent Pandemics at the Source.

This Task Force has released a new report outlining the strong scientific foundations for taking actions to stop the next pandemic by preventing the spillover of pathogens from animals to people.

The report provides recommendations for research and actions to forestall new pandemics that have largely been absent from high-level discussions about prevention, including a novel call to integrate conservation actions with strengthening healthcare systems globally.

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The blueprint for pandemic prevention - an urgent call to action for policy makers

PPATS Coalition

The coalition for Preventing Pandemics at the Source has released a 2-page document summarizing the case for preventing pathogen spillover, based on the latest research, and the priority actions that should be taken by governments. This document also addresses how Foundations, donors and businesses can help.

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Summary of analysis: Interventions to prevent pathogen spillover and curb early disease spread among domestic animals and humans

PPATS Coalition

The coalition for Preventing Pandemics at the Source has released a summary of its forthcoming paper on interventions to prevent pathogen spillover and curb early disease spread among domestic animals and humans

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Urgent need for integrated pandemic policies on pathogen spillover

PPATS Coalition

Members of the coalition for Preventing Pandemics at the Source and Pallavi Kache, from the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology, Columbia University write in The Lancet Planetary Health about the urgent need for integrated pandemic policies on pathogen spillover

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