Introduction
After humans, bats are the most abundant and most widely distributed mammals in the world. Bat species, classified in the order Chiroptera, constitute around 20% of all mammalian species. In many countries the bat species are protected and the study of their diseases is not an easy task. A number of infectious pathogens have been identified in bats and some of these pathogens have zoonotic potential. The actual role played by bats as reservoir disseminating zoonoses is not really defined for most zoonotic virus infections, but there is an increasing interest in this field of research.
Goal of the workshop:
To provide an update and a forum for discussion on the emerging diseases and emerging zoonoses of bats in Europe and worldwide.
Target audience:
Bat diseases specialists of all disciplines, including pathology, ecology, epidemiology, bacteriology, parasitology, diagnostics, immunology, and others.
Overall preliminary program:
The workshop is scheduled for the 13th of September 2010 from 13.30-18.00.
The workshop will include:
Four plenary lectures:
1. Bat ecology and climate change Steve Rossiter
2. Bat “white nose syndrome” Alex Barlow, Gudrun Wibbelt
3. Bat related zoonoses Wim H.M. van der Poel
4. Rabies surveillance in bats in Europe Juan E. Echevarria
There will be a poster session and a sessions for contributed oral presentations on the following topics:
a) Emerging diseases of bats in Europe and worldwide
b) Emerging zoonoses of bats in Europe and worldwide
c) Bat ecology in relation to climate change
d) Epidemiology of diseases and surveillance in bats
Please submit your abstracts for the workshop using the same instructions as for the EWDA conference.
Contact name and email address for more information:
Organizers: Netherlands Bat Zoonoses Working Group (Bart Kooi, Peter Lina, Judith van de Brand, Thijs Kuiken, Hans Kramps, Chantal Reusken, Wilma Hazeleger, Wim van der Poel) and Dutch Society for Wildlife Health, contact Email: wim.vanderpoel@wur.nl