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Summary

The article illustrates that throughout history, pandemics and epidemics such as plague, cholera, flu, SARS, and MERS have regularly afflicted humanity. The current COVID-19 pandemic is the latest in this series. Many pandemics are caused by zoonotic pathogens transmitted to humans through activities like breeding, hunting, and global trade. The paper enables us to understand that pathogen transmission has led to methods for preventing and controlling infections. Historically, public health measures such as isolation, quarantine, and border control have been effective in containing disease spread, and these methods are still used today for COVID-19. The paper outlines that the global surveillance of water-borne, vector-borne, and zoonotic diseases is crucial for early detection of infectious threats. Rapid diagnostic testing, contact tracing, drug repurposing, disease biomarkers, and new vaccine development platforms are essential for an effective pandemic response.