Deepen the knowledge of viruses, vital for our survival

There are thousands of species of viruses and, although most are harmless, a small percentage of them have the potential to cause diseases and pathologies that can be very serious. Some viruses that infect animals could pass to our species with great aggression, as an example we have the case of the bird flu (H5N1) that passed from chickens to humans.

Knowing the viruses with the potential to infect us will be of vital importance to deal with them much more effectively and thus be able to manage infectious emergencies in the best possible way. This is why global microbiology is facing this new challenge: to create a map of the viruses that threaten humanity in order to change from a reactive to a proactive model.

Human interference in the natural world is increasing, as is the possibility of contact with different types of microorganisms. In this sense, globalization is an accelerating factor in the spread of a given infectious agent in a very short time. A total of 4,500 viral species are known, of which only 5% would affect humans, although it is estimated that the universe of unknown viruses is much larger than known.

The intrusion of the human being in the natural world is increasing and therefore the possibility of contacting different types of unknown microorganisms increases. In this sense, globalization is an accelerating factor in the dissemination of a specific infectious agent in a very short time. A total of 4,500 viral species are known, of which only 5% would affect the human being although it is estimated that the universe of unknown viruses is much higher than known.

Classifying such a large number of viruses present on our planet will require an estimated investment of US$ 1.2 billion over the next 10 years, an amount that could well be profitable since the last three recent outbreaks of Ebola, MERS and Zika, which accounted for some US$ 60 billion of expenditure, excluding loss of human life.