Prof EcoHealth - Moses Chimbari
Prof Moses Chimbari: Former Dean of Research, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Top 30 Researcher at UKZN (2019, 2018), Deputy Director of Tackling Infections to Benefit Africa (TIBA), Vice-President of Ecohealth International, Chair of the African Chapter of EcoHealth International.
His Work: EcoHealth is the idea that environmental health (or ecosystem health) is deeply linked to human and animal health. Disrupt the environment, and the animals and plants that live there, and human health is affected in ways that you might not have imagined. Fix environmental problems and you can improve human health.
A very important EcoHealth topic is zoonotic (zo-o-notic) diseases or infections which are transmitted from animals to humans (video). Zoonoses may be bacterial, viral, or parasitic. Many of the major zoonotic diseases affect food production, create obstacles to international trade, and can have major economic impacts. Some examples include bird flu, Lyme disease, Ebola virus, coronavirus and schistosomiasis which Moses works on. Schistosomiasis is also known as Bilharzia.
Schistosomiasis is caused by a flatworm that infects people. In the flatworm’s life cycle it moves from living in a specific type of snail, into the water where it can infect a mammal, in the mammal the worm makes eggs which can go back into the water and there it infects a snail and the cycle starts again. Over 220 million people around the world need preventative treatment for schistosomiasis but it doesn’t get the attention or research money it deserves and is a neglected tropical disease.
When swimming or playing in contaminated water, a person can become infected by the flatworm and develop schistosomiasis. In children, schistosomiasis effects normal growth, causing stunting and interferes with a child’s learning ability. There is a though a medicine, praziquantel that kills the flatworm in infected people. A single dose is all that is needed, but a person can become infected again and an entire community must be treated at the same time to reduce the flatworms in the water that could re-infect.
Because the problems are complex an EcoHealth approach involves people from many different disciplines – public health, veterinary science, ecology, social science, marketing, economics. To treat schistosomaisis, you need health care workers to understand how many people are infected, vets who can see if the flatworm is in cattle and dogs that share the water, community leaders who can gather people to be treated, fish experts if you are introducing fish that eat the snails, sanitation experts to keep the water from becoming re-contaminated, and others
Moses’s team specifically is studying the effect of schistosomaisis on growth and learning in young children, and developing large scale treatment plans so that kids are cured of schistosomaisis and stay that way. See his team’s publications.
Moses has trained more than 20 PhD and 11 Masters students and is an author on more than 100 scientific articles!
His Top Tip: Don’t pursue science for financial reasons, do it to solve real problems and you will find yourself happy to be helpful, and part of the solution.
His Heroes: I will always remember the words of marine biologist Dr Peter Morgan, inventor of the ventilated pit latrine who received the 2013 Stockholm Water Prize for his work to protect the health and lives of millions of people through improved sanitation and water technologies
“Solutions are in the basic principles” he said, as he explained that this life saving latrine applies basic biology and physics.
His Motto: “Nothing is impossible with Moses”
Connect: Twitter @mjchimbari
In isiZulu
USolwazi Moses Chimbari: OwayeyiDini Lokucwaninga, Ikolishi LezeSayensi Yezempilo, eNyuvesi yaKwaZulu-Natali, Umcwaningi Ohamba Phambili Kwama-30 e-UKZN (2019, 2018), Iphini Lomqondisi Wokulwa Nezifo Ezizozuzisa I-Afrika (TIBA), Iphini Likamongameli we-Ecohealth International, USihlalo we-African Chapter of EcoHealth International.
Umsebenzi Wakhe: I-EcoHealth umqondo wokuthi impilo yemvelo (noma impilo ye-ecosystem) ixhumene ngokujulile nempilo yabantu neyezilwane. Gxilisa imvelo, nezilwane nezitshalo ezihlala lapho, futhi impilo yabantu iyathinteka ngezindlela obungeke uzicabange. Lungisa izinkinga zemvelo futhi ungakwazi ukuthuthukisa impilo yomuntu.
Isihloko esibaluleke kakhulu se-EcoHealth yizifo ze-zoonotic (zo-o-notic) noma izifo ezithathelwana zisuka ezilwaneni ziye kubantu (ividiyo). Ama-Zoonose angase abe yibhaktheriya, igciwane, noma i-parasitic. Izifo eziningi ezinkulu ze-zoonotic zithinta ukukhiqizwa kokudla, zidale izithiyo ekuhwebeni kwamazwe ngamazwe, futhi zingaba nomthelela omkhulu kwezomnotho. Ezinye izibonelo zifaka umkhuhlane wezinyoni, isifo seLyme, igciwane le-Ebola, i-coronavirus kanye neschistosomiasis uMose asebenza kukho. I-Schistosomiasis yaziwa nangokuthi i-Bilharzia.
I-Schistosomiasis ibangelwa isikelemu esihlasela abantu. Emjikelezweni wokuphila kwe-flatworm iyasuka ekubeni iphile ohlotsheni oluthile lomnenke, iye emanzini lapho ingakwazi ukuthelela isilwane esincelisayo, esilwaneni esincelisayo isibungu senza amaqanda angakwazi ukubuyela emanzini futhi lapho sithelela umnenke bese uqala umjikelezo. futhi. Abantu abangaphezu kwezigidi ezingu-220 emhlabeni jikelele badinga ukwelashwa kokuvimbela i-schistosomiasis kodwa akukutholi ukunakwa noma imali yocwaningo eyifanele futhi isifo esinganakiwe sasezindaweni ezishisayo.
Lapho ebhukuda noma edlala emanzini angcolile, umuntu angangenwa i-flatworm futhi abe ne-schistosomiasis. Ezinganeni, i-schistosomiasis ithinta ukukhula okuvamile, ibangele ukugogeka futhi iphazamise ikhono lokufunda lengane. Kunomuthi, i-praziquantel obulala isikelemu kubantu abanaleli gciwane. Umthamo owodwa kuphela odingekayo, kodwa umuntu angaphinda atheleleke futhi umphakathi wonke kufanele welashwe ngesikhathi esifanayo ukuze kuncishiswe izikelemu emanzini ezingase ziphinde zitheleleke.
Ngenxa yokuthi izinkinga ziyinkimbinkimbi indlela ye-EcoHealth ihlanganisa abantu abavela emikhakheni eminingi eyahlukene - ezempilo yomphakathi, isayensi yezilwane, i-ecology, isayensi yezenhlalakahle, ukumaketha, ezomnotho. Ukuze welaphe i-schistosomais, udinga abasebenzi bezempilo ukuze baqonde ukuthi bangaki abantu abanaleli gciwane, odokotela bezilwane abakwazi ukubona ukuthi i-flatworm isezinkomo nezinja ezihlukaniselana amanzi, abaholi bomphakathi abakwazi ukuqoqa abantu ukuze belashwe, ongoti bezinhlanzi uma usethula. izinhlanzi ezidla iminenke, ongoti bokukhucululwa kwendle ukuze amanzi angaphinde angcole, nokunye
Ithimba lika-Moses licwaninga ngokuqondile umphumela we-schistosomais ekukhuleni nasekufundeni ezinganeni ezincane, futhi lenza izinhlelo ezinkulu zokwelapha ukuze izingane zelashwe ku-schistosomais futhi zihlale zinganjalo. Bona okushicilelwe yithimba lakhe.
UMose uqeqeshe abafundi abangaphezu kuka-20 be-PhD kanye ne-11 Masters futhi ungumbhali wezihloko zesayensi ezingaphezu kwe-100!
Ithiphu Lakhe Eliphezulu: Musa ukuphishekela isayensi ngezizathu zezimali, kwenze ukuze uxazulule izinkinga zangempela futhi uzozithola ujabule ngokuba usizo, kanye nengxenye yesixazululo.
Amaqhawe Akhe: Ngiyohlale ngiwakhumbula amazwi esazi sezinto eziphilayo zasolwandle uDkt Peter Morgan, umsunguli wendlu yangasese yomgodi engenisa umoya owathola uMklomelo Wamanzi waseStockholm wezi-2013 ngomsebenzi wakhe wokuvikela impilo nempilo yezigidi zabantu ngobuchwepheshe obuthuthukisiwe bokukhucululwa kwendle namanzi.
"Izixazululo zisezimisweni eziyisisekelo," esho, njengoba echaza ukuthi le ndlu yangasese esindisa impilo isebenza ngebhayoloji eyisisekelo kanye ne-physics.
Isiqubulo sakhe: "Akukho okungenzeki ngoMose"
Xhuma: Twitter @mjchimbari