Life Under Stress: Welcome To The 21st Century

An Introduction To Medical Ecology

Total biomass of the earth = 1,840 x 109 tonnes

Total biomass of humans = 200 x 106 tonnes

Total biomass of all animals = 0.2 x 109 tonnes

Ecosystem Services*

* from: Living In The Environment Thompson Brooks/Cole Pubs. 2004

A 6th Mass Extinction?

Polio - nearly gone

Some Good News Regarding Extinction:

Yaws - almost eliminated

Smallpox - eliminated (probably)

Onchocerciasis - on its way out

The Bad News Is We May Be Next!

Billions % Urban

The Bad News Is We May Be Next!

19731973

Some Bad News:

Since 1973 over 50 new infectious disease entities have emerged

onto the human scene

Since 1973 over 50 new infectious disease entities have emerged

onto the human scene

*

* ProMed reporter-at-large

More Bad News:Most vector-borne diseases are on the rise

About 25% of all drugs currently on the market come from natural sourcesAbout 25% of all drugs currently on the market come from natural sources

27,000 species/yr1950-present

Chopping Down The Tree Of Life

How many new drugs have been lostdue to extinction of species of plants andanimals that we had no idea even existed?

Why we should care

A 21st Century Dilemma: Microbial Drug Resistance*

*See: http://www.fda.gov/cvm/antimicrobial/022200slides/White/tsld004.htm

Microbe Disease ResistanceEnterobacteriaceae bacteremia, pneumonia aminoglycosides

wound infections β-lactamschloramphenicoltrimethoprimFQs

Enterococcus bacteremia aminoglycosideswound infections β-lactams

erythromycinglycopeptides

Haemophilus influenzae meningitis, otitis media β-lactamspneumonia tetracycline

chloramphenicoltrimethaprim

Mycobacterium tuberculosis tuberculosis aminoglycosidesethambutolisoniazidrifampin

Nisseria gonorrhoea gonorrhea β-lactamstetracylcineFQs

Top Ten Drug-resistant Microbes

Microbe Disease Resistance

Plasmodium falciparum malaria chloroquine

Pseudomonas aerogenosa bacteremia, pneumonia aminoglycosidesUTIs β-lactams

tetracyclineTMX

Shigella dysenteriae severe dysentery ampicillinchloramphenicoltetracyclineTMX

Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia, pneumonia chloramphenicolwound infections macrolides

trimethoprimFQsβ-lactamstetracyclineglycopeptides?

Streptococcus pneumoniae meningitis, pneumonia aminoglycosideschloramphenicolmacrolidespenicillin

Malaria300 million infections/year3 million deaths/year, mostly in Africa

Drugs - Most strains of Plasmodium falciparum are resistant to chloroquine and its derivatives.

Best Control Method: Eliminate breeding sites for vectorspecies of mosquitoes.

Examples: Ancient Rome - Construct city of OstiaSouth Eastern USA drained swamps, creating new farmland.

The Linkages Between Environmental Degradation

And Infectious Diseases

Fragmentation of Ecosystems

AgricultureSettlement

MiningIndustrialization

Civil unrestWar

Fragmentation of Ecosystems

AgricultureSettlement

MiningIndustrialization

Civil unrestWar

Sources Of Pollution

Non-point Sources:1. Agricultural*2. Residential

Point Sources:1. Industrial2. Residential

*Largest world-wide source - soil erosion, pesticides, fertilizers, herbicides, heavy metals, animal and human waste, etc.

Sources Of Pollution

Non-point Sources:1. Agricultural*2. Residential

Point Sources:1. Industrial2. Residential

Q: Who allows this?

A: The EPA: Agricultural runoff is exempt from The Clean Water Act

See: http://www.epa.gov/region5/water/cwa.htm

Cryptosporidium parvum

Reservoir host

Access to safe drinking water is everyone’s right

Yet……………..

Many Tropical Infectious Diseases AreTransmitted At The Agricultural

Interface

MalariaHookwormAscaris Trichuris SchistosomiasisFilariasisNipha

Geohelminths (hookworm, ascaris, trichuris)

Eliminate feces as an environmental contaminant and you effectively control the spread all parasitic diseases spread by fecal-oral route.

Two approaches, two different outcomes:

United States : The birth of the outhouse. This single architectural wonder controlled all fecally-transmitted infections: viruses, bacteria, protozoa, and helminths.

Southeast Asia and China: Ferment feces before using it as fertilizer on crops: eliminated hookworm.

In 2050 Population Stabilizes At 9.3 billion*

*

Population Growth and Poverty

Problem:

How to feed the next 2.8 billion peoplewithout incurring more environmental damage due to traditional agriculturalpractices

1975

Land Use And AgricultureRondonia, Brazil

1986 1992

1975

1986 1992

Conclusion of Science article

Don’t just sit there,do something!

A Possible Solution: The Vertical Farm

http://www.urbanecology.org/

Vibrant,successful citiesare not onlypossible butnecessary for thehealth of societyand our planet.Urban Ecologyplans and designscities that sustainthe people,naturalresources, andeconomynecessary foreveryone tothrive.

Advantages Of Vertical Farming

• Year-round crop production• No weather related crop failures due to droughts, floods • Eliminates agricultural runoff • Converts black water to potable water• Greatly reduces the incidence of many infectious diseases• Adds energy back to the grid via methane generation • Dramatically reduces fossil fuel use (no tractors, plows, etc.)• Converts abandoned urban properties into food production• Sustainability for urban centers• Creates new employment opportunities• Returns farm land to nature, restoring ecosystem services• Reduces the incidence of armed conflict over natural

resources, such as water and land for agriculture

Advantages Of Vertical Farming

Adds energy back to the grid via methane generation

August 14th August 15th

What A Difference A Day Makes

Returns farm land to nature, restoring ecosystem services

Advantages Of Vertical Farming

A Vertical Farm*

* not exactly what I had in mind

Vertical New York City

Photo: NASA

Virtual Vertical Farm*

*www.verticalfarm.com

Kristin AndersonNicola Areshenko

Alan BrownJennifer BuskeyAmanda ColliganMarisa Dahlman

Catherine Dell’OrtoCatherine Tuglus

*Steven Chen- technical advisor

Medical Ecology Class of 2003*

How It Could WorkSustainability through re-cycling

BioremediationRe-gain “lost” water

Energy ConsiderationsCapture all energy in black water

Methane DigesterNo new technology needed

Original Design by Andrew Kranis, Columbia University School of Architecture 2003

A lunar colony

Schematic for advanced life-support system

Or a colony on Mars

Components for a Mars colony

The Dawn Of A New Beginning

The Dawn Of A New Beginning

(perhaps)

So, What’s For Dinner?

Anything you want

Any Time You Want It

Any Where In The WorldAny Where In The World

Or In The Universe