Two scientists are working together from different sides of the globe, namely from Canada and Sri Lanka, to improve animal health in Sri Lanka, in hopes of addressing a potential global health threat.

The two scientists in question who are studying and tackling the issue of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), are Dr. Roshan Madalagama attached to the Veterinary Research Institute in Peradeniya and Joe Rubin who is a Professor of Veterinary Microbiology at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon and also attached to the University of Saskatchewan.

Antimicrobial resistance is what happens when bacteria, fungus, and parasites build up resistance to medication like antibiotics, making infections harder to treat and some procedures riskier. It can happen due to the overuse or misuse of those medications. The World Health Organisation (WHO) deems it a major global threat, and the rates are especially high in Sri Lanka.

The immediate worry is that if it goes unchecked, vets in Sri Lanka will not be able to treat illnesses in livestock, which many families depend on for income or food for their own families. “They’re really relying on it for their nutrition, so, it’s not the bigger-scale agriculture that we may be familiar with here in Canada,” said Rubin.

Up until last year, Madalagama said that Sri Lanka did not monitor that resistance in animals, only in humans. He hopes to create a national system to keep track of the resistance in animals, especially livestock. 

The overarching concern however is that resistance seen in animals could transfer to humans anywhere. “All the world is like one village, a global village, so, because of that, we need to have a very collective effort,” Madalagama said.

Madalagama has helped the WHO and Sri Lanka’s Government address antimicrobial resistance from a veterinary standpoint, but now, he and Rubin are focusing on more grassroots level work. Thanks to funding from the University of Saskatchewan, the two started a years-long effort to help rural vets in Sri Lanka detect issues faster, and improve training at the country’s national veterinary lab. Their first endeavour was to create a lab manual, accessible from anywhere in the world. Rubin visited Sri Lanka in March, and plans on welcoming two vet technicians to Saskatoon this fall.

(Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)