zoonosis

noun

plural zoonoses zō-ˈä-nə-ˌsēz How to pronounce zoonosis (audio)
ˌzō-ə-ˈnō-ˌsēz
: an infection or disease that is transmissible from animals to humans under natural conditions
Among the zoonoses associated with dogs, cats, and birds, those with diarrhea as a predominant manifestation include cryptosporidiosis, giardiasis, campylobacteriosis, and salmonellosis.Peter Jesselet et al.
also : an infection or disease that is transmissible between animals and humans
bidirectional zoonosis
see also reverse zoonosis
zoonotic adjective
a zoonotic infection/disease
A zoonotic virus is a virus that lives naturally in an animal and can infect human cells, perhaps mutating slightly in the course of passage, which enables the virus to start a chain of infection through human hosts. Richard Preston

Examples of zoonosis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Ebright further accused Andersen and Garry of perjury, based on their denials at a congressional hearing in July that Fauci pressured them to advocate for the zoonosis theory in their paper. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2024 Unlike mosquitos, the flies are not vectors for diseases otherwise known as zoonoses, illnesses that certain animals can pass to humans. Catherine Wang, Forbes, 27 Nov. 2023 The paper’s authors noted that all the features of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID, are observable in nature, coinciding with the zoonosis hypothesis. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2023 Newspapers and cable news shows have long treated the lab-leak and zoonosis theories as somehow equivalent, often by asserting that both suffer from lack of evidence. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2023 However, as the lack of evidence for zoonosis has become clear, the relative weight of the real and hard (if circumstantial) evidence favoring the possibility of a lab leak origin should have received more attention. George Calhoun, Forbes, 18 Apr. 2023 This provides circumstantial evidence in support of the virus spreading to humans from animals—a type of infection known as zoonosis—at the market. Tanya Lewis, Scientific American, 12 Apr. 2023 This is an example of a zoonosis: an animal virus that jumps to humans. John V. Williams, CBS News, 12 Apr. 2023 Most agencies favored the natural zoonosis theory. Joel Achenbach, Anchorage Daily News, 18 Nov. 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'zoonosis.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

probably alteration, by conformation to -osis, of French zoonose, from zoo- zoo- + Greek nósos "disease" — more at nosology

First Known Use

1873, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of zoonosis was in 1873

Dictionary Entries Near zoonosis

Cite this Entry

“Zoonosis.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/zoonosis. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Medical Definition

zoonosis

noun
plural zoonoses -ˌsēz How to pronounce zoonosis (audio)
: an infection or disease that is transmissible from animals to humans under natural conditions
also : an infection or disease that is transmissible between animals and humans
bidirectional zoonosis
zoonotic adjective
Q fever, a febrile, zoonotic disease with a worldwide distribution, typically results from exposure to domestic livestock animals … David R. Franz et al., Journal of the American Medical Association

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