Which statement correctly describes a zoonotic disease?
- AIt spreads only through contaminated food
- BIt is caused by plant pathogens
- CIt is a disease shared between vertebrate animals and humans
- DIt is a disease confined to wildlife species only
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: (c) It is a disease shared between vertebrate animals and humans
Explanation
A zoonotic disease (zoonosis) is an infectious disease that can pass between vertebrate animals and humans. The cause may be a virus, bacterium, parasite or fungus, and it may spread by contact, bites, food, body fluids or vectors such as mosquitoes and ticks.
Examples: rabies (dogs, bats), Nipah (fruit bats), bird flu, plague (rodents), Kyasanur Forest Disease (monkeys) and Japanese encephalitis (pigs and water birds). About 60% of known human infectious diseases, and about three-quarters of new ones, come from animals.