Future Directions
for Public Health
Microbiology
Elaine Luc
Sancia Tam
Shawna Browne
What is Public Health?
 Public
Health is the science of protecting
and improving the health of communities
through education, promotion of healthy
lifestyles, and research for disease and
injury prevention.
Public Health
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
Adolescent Health
Adolescent Nutrition
Alcohol
Anemia
Cardiovascular health
Child Health
Disability & HIV/AIDS
Environmental Health
Essential Newborn Care
HIV/AIDS
HIV/AIDS & Sexual and
Reproductive Health
Linkages
HIV/AIDS & Youth
Immunization
Indoor Air Pollution
Injection Safety
Maternal Mortality
Mental Health
18.
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20.
21.
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24.
25.
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33.
Mother to Child Transmission
Nutrition
Reproductive health
Road Safety
School Deworming
School Health
Smoke-free Workplaces
Surveillance
Tobacco Control
Tobacco Pack Info.
Tobacco Quitlines
Trachoma
Tuberculosis
Vitamin A
Health Care Waste Management
Water, Sanitation & Hygiene
Future Directions for Public
Health Summary
1.
2.
3.
4.
Foodbourne Illnesses
Nanotechnology
Vaccines
Government Intervention/ Public Health
Practice
Foodborne
Illnesses
Elaine Luc
Government & Food Importation Regulations


The Parliament of Canada
 “Foods and Drugs Act”: minimum health and safety
requirements on all food sold in Canada
Important for: prevention of fraud or deception in things such
as labeling, packaging, treatment, processing, and sale
advertising
Recent Trends in Preventing Foodborne
Illnesses
 Setting
food safety standards in international
trade
 The Commission of the Codex Alimentarius
 Development
of stricter standards and
laboratory analyses in response to increasing
consumer concerns
A
reorientation of quality assurance methods
 Shifting from end-product testing to quality
management of the production process
Food Preparation

Improper food preparation is one of the main causes for foodborne
illnesses
Future Directions?
WHO’s global strategy to decrease
the burden of foodborne diseases
 Educating food handlers and
consumers of the importance of
proper food preparation (Five Keys to Safer Food)
 Increasing surveillance of foodborne diseases
 Expanding the involvement and participation of the monitoring of
food contamination
 Promotion of new food technologies

Nanotechnology & Detection of
Contaminants
Nanosensors can be used as
a tool for “precision
farming” and detect the
presence of contaminants
How Does it Work?
- Carbon nanotubes trap and measure proteins or
small molecules for the presence of contaminants
- Chemical signals or enzymatic reactions are
triggered when contaminants are present
Nanotechnology & Detection of Food
Spoilage
 Nano
Bioluminescence Detection Spray
 Contains a protein that fluoresces when bound
to the surface of microbes
 Uses:
 Food spoilage detection
 Fighting bioterrroism
Nanotechnology & Prevention
 Water

purifier: NanoCeram Fibers
Aluminum oxide fibers acts as a filter, removing viruses,
bacteria, and protozoan cysts from water
 Clean

soil and ground water: Nanoscale powder
organic contaminants are oxidized and broken down
to less toxic compounds
Nanotechnology & Food Packaging
 Nanocapsules,
Nanosensor strips
 Durethan KU2-2601 packaging film
 Imperm
Emerging
Vaccine
Technologies
Shawna Browne
The Vaccine Industry
•
•
•
Many biotechnology companies
are involved in the research and
development of new and
innovative vaccines
The worldwide vaccine market is
growing quickly at a rate of 9.7%,
and this will result in the
introduction of new products and
expanding the use of current
products
The vaccine industry is expected
to earn $34 billion dollars in sales
in 2012
Past Challenges?
• Many factors discourage vaccine research and
development including:
• Limited demand
• Liability concerns
• Cost
• However, the vaccine market has gained renewed
attention in recent years, and this is likely due to:
• The increased demand for vaccines
• Technological advances
• New laws
• The government and many non-profit organizations have
been playing a role in funding vaccine development and
research
Why are vaccines a critical component of public
health?
• Vaccines are considered to be one of the greatest medical
advancements of all time.
• Vaccines are essential public health tools because they
prevent disease and death.
• Vaccines have been responsible for the control of various
diseases including: polio, measles, pertussis (whooping
cough), tetanus, and Haemophilus influenzae type
(causative agent of childhood meningitis)
What is a vaccine?
• A preparation of a microbial agent that when
administered induces a protective immunity against
microbial infections.
• Typically composed of a live weakened
microorganism, a killed microorganism, or microbial
cellular components.
How do vaccines work?

When the immune system is exposed to the microbial
antigens within a vaccine, it reacts by producing
antibodies and memory cells.

If an immunized individual is subsequently re-exposed to
the same microbial antigen, the immune system mounts a
strong response which leads to the rapid recognition and
destruction of the invading pathogen.
What new developments are being made in the field of
vaccination?
•
The biotechnology industry is constantly searching for new
methods of improving the safety, effectiveness, and ease of
administration of vaccines.
•
Current vaccine technologies in development include:
•
•
•
New methods of administering vaccinations
Improvement of the vaccination manufacturing process
The discovery of vaccines for diseases which lack effective
vaccines
New Methods of Administering Vaccinations
The Vaccine Patch
•
Research is being devoted to the development of vaccines that
can be delivered transcutaneously through the skin
How does it work?
•
When the patch is applied on the skin, micro-needles deliver the
vaccine at the surface of the skin to the immune cells
An array of micro-needles
How does the vaccine patch work?
• The Langerhans cells uptake the vaccine antigen and
migrate to the regional draining lymph nodes.
• Once in the lymph nodes, the Langerhans cells present the
vaccine antigen to T lymphocytes and B lymphocytes,
resulting in a robust immune response
What are the advantages of a vaccine patch?
•
•
•
•
•
Painless
Is stable at room temperature
Can be easily transported
Easy disposal
Can be administered by untrained persons
New Methods of Administering Vaccinations
Nasal Vaccines
•
•
•
The vaccine is sprayed into the nose
Intranasally administered vaccines mimic the route of entry for
pathogens which cause upper respiratory tract infections
Nasal vaccines are more effective than intramuscular injections at
protecting against invasion of the mucosal surfaces
FluMist Nasal Vaccine for Influenza
•
•
Approved for sale in Canada in
2010
Utilizes a live weakened
influenza virus
Issues?
•
•
•
Is not recommended in children
younger than 2, adults over 50,
pregnant women, individuals
with asthma, or
immunocompromised
individuals
Is not effective when the nose is
congested
More expensive than the
traditional flu vaccine
New Developments in Vaccine Production Technology
Plant Derived Vaccines
• A Canadian company called PlantForm is looking into the
development of genetically modified crops that are
pharmaceutically useful.
How?
Traditional Vaccine Production
•
•
•
The traditional method of
preparing certain vaccines
involves injecting the
pathogen into the fluid
surrounding the embryo of a
chicken egg
This process is expensive and
resource demanding
To produce 300 million doses of
vaccine, about 900 million
eggs are required
Advantages of Plant Based
Vaccines
•
•
Plants are inexpensive to grow
Plants would have the ability to
produce large quantities of
vaccine very quickly
Concerns?
• Difficult to regulate the amount of vaccine produced by
each plant
• Ethical controversy
• Issues with patent rights
• Must prevent contamination of food crops with
experimental ‘pharm’ crops
Vaccines Currently Under Development
Tuberculosis
• The current BCG vaccine for TB utilizes a live preparation of
weakened Mycobacterium bovis –has variable effectiveness
• A new TB vaccine developed at McMaster University is
prepared by inserting a gene from M. tuberculosis into an
adenovirus
HIV
• New vaccine called SAV001 developed at The University of
Western Ontario has received approval for human clinical trials
• Utilizes a genetically-modified, killed whole HIV-1 virus
Herpes
• A promising herpes vaccine was developed using the
glycoprotein molecules typically found on the surface of the
herpes simplex virus
• It was revealed in early January 2012 that the trial had failed,
and had only reduced infection by about 35% in the
vaccinated individuals
Government
Intervention/
Public Health
Practices
Sancia Tam
Recent Study
A
recent study shows
that out of 404 British
Commuters, 28% of them
found fecal bacteria on
their hands either from:


Commuting
Or simply because they
somehow managed to
forget to wash their
hands in the morning
SOLUTION = Copper
Copper in the Ancient World
 The
Hippocrates
Collection (460-380 BC):
the father of medicine
recommended the use
of copper for leg ulcers
related to varicose veins
 Pliny, 23-79 AD: used
copper oxide with honey
to treat intestinal worms
 Aztecs gargled a mixture
of copper to treat sore
throats
Why Copper

Copper is the first solid material legally able to
make antimicrobial public health claims. The
claims include:




99.9% continuous kill within two hours
>99.9% kill of Gram-negative & Gram-positive
bacteria within two hours
>99.9% continuous kill within two hours after
repeated wet & dry abrasion &
recontamination
>99% kill after multiple, consecutive
recontaminations
Why is Copper antibacterial?
 It
is because it can alter the microbial
proteins by forming damaging free
radicals, it can disrupt enzyme structures
as well as interact with lipids and disrupt
the bacterial cell wall.
Copper Touch Surfaces
Program

Primary aim:


Secondary aim:


Demonstrate the effectiveness of copper alloys and its
capability to kill pathogens in healthcare and other
high risk facilities
To access bacterial colonization rates by examining
the impact of copper on the environmental bioload
as well as rates of patient colonization
Third aim:

To elucidate the transmission dynamics of the
indicator pathogens by using molecular typing
environmental and clinical samples
Current Research on Copper

Research to validate copper’s ability

Copper Touch Surfaces Program has 3
hypothesis:
1.
2.
3.
Introduction of copper touch surfaces will
reduce levels of harmful microbes in hospital
environments
Reduction of bioload in hospital environments
of dangerous microbes will improve clinical
outcomes
Antimicrobial effects of copper will help with
current CDC practices
What bacteria's can copper
help kill?


Copper alloys are microbiocidal within a matter of hours
CDA-sponsored research demonstrates that copper is
effective against:











Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria
Molds
Fungi
Viruses
MRSA
E. coliO157:H7
Listeria monocytogenes
Legionella pneumophila
Aspergillus niger
Influenza A
And other pathogens
New Market Applications
 Architectural



Office buildings
Hotel
gymnasiums
 Consumer



Appliances
Computer keyboards
Sinks
Bed rails
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus (MRSA)
Escherichia coli O157:H7
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Acinetobacter baumannii
Clostridium difficile
Dangers of Copper?
 Too






much copper can cause:
Nausea
Vomiting
Diarrhea
Liver damage
Kidney damage
death
Conclusions

Infectious disease is not going away

Public health microbiologists aim to reduce the negative
impact of pathogens on human populations

Future goals include:




i. The prevention and control of the spread of infectious disease
ii. The improvement of current diagnostic services and disease
surveillance programs
iii. The development of emergency preparedness procedures in
the case of a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease
iv. The continuation of innovative research
References
1.
Parker-Pope, Tara. "Hand-Washing Helps Fight Flu." The New York Times, 15 Sept.
2009. Web. http://nytimes.com/2009/09/12/health/15well.html.
2.
"Copper Touch Surfaces." TouchSurfaces Clinical Trials. 20 Oct. 2011. Web. 03
Feb. 2012. <http://www.coppertouchsurfaces.org/index.html>.
3.
"Medical Uses of Copper in Antiquity." Copper.org. Copper Development
Association Inc., June 2000. Web.
<http://www.copper.org/publications/newsletters/innovations/2000/06/medicin
e-chest.html>.
4.
"Dangers of Copper." Global Healing Center. 2012. Web
<http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/heavy-metals/dangers-of-copper>.
5.
"Vaccine Patch." Intercell. Web.
<http://www.intercell.com/main/forvaccperts/technologies/vaccine-patch/>.
6.
Prifti, Christine. "The Vaccine Industry - An Overview." VaccineEthics.org.
University of Pennsylvania Center for Bioethics, July 2010. Web.
<http://www.vaccineethics.org/issue_briefs/industry.php>.
7.
Greb, Erik. "Strong Growth Predicted for Global Vaccine Market Pharmaceutical Technology." Pharmaceutical Technology. Aug. 2010. Web
<http://www.pharmtech.com/pharmtech/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=684403>.
References
8.
Amos, Jonathan. "EU Funding for GM Plant Vaccines." BBC News. The British
Broadcasting Corporation, 12 July 2004. Web. 03 Feb. 2012.
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3887517.stm>.
9.
Berman, Jessica. "Dissolving Vaccine Patch Might Eliminate Flu Shots | Health |
English." Voice of America. 20 June 2010. Web.
<http://www.voanews.com/english/news/health/Dissolving-Vaccine-PatchMight-Eliminate-Flu-Shots-98867364.html>.
10.
"Nanotechnology in Food." Nanotechnology Made Clear. Web.
<http://www.understandingnano.com/food.html>.
11.
ElAmin, Ahmed. "Company Develops Spray To Light Up Pathogens." Food
Production Daily. 27 Jan. 2006. Web.
<http://www.foodproductiondaily.com/Quality-Safety/Company-developsspray-to-light-up-pathogens>.
12.
Kaledin, Leonid, and Fred Tepper. "Virus and Protein Separation Using Nano
Alumina Fiber Media." Argonide Corporation. Web.
<http://www.argonide.com/publications/bioseparations.pdf>.
13.
"Prevention of Foodborne Disease: Five Keys to Safer Food." WHO. World Health
Organization, 15 Sept. 2011. Web.
<http://www.who.int/foodsafety/consumer/5keys/en/>.
References
14.
"Causes of Food Poisoning." Canadian Food Inspection Agency. The
Government of Canada, Sept. 2011. Web.
<http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fssa/concen/causee.shtml>.
14.
Ledford, Heidi. "Failed Herpes Vaccine Puzzles Virologists : Nature News &
Comment." Nature Publishing Group. 4 Jan. 2012. Web. 03 Feb. 2012.
<http://www.nature.com/news/failed-herpes-vaccine-puzzles-virologists1.9739>.