Final answer:
Preventing animal diseases involves vaccines, antiviral drugs, and synthetic pesticides. Vaccines may use various forms of the virus while antiviral drugs treat active infections. Research by veterinarians also plays a critical role in understanding and preventing zoonotic diseases.
Step-by-step explanation:
Treatments used to prevent animal diseases, parasites, and other disorders involve a variety of approaches. To combat viral diseases which can range from the common cold to severe illnesses like meningitis, vaccination is often used to build immunity and prevent outbreaks. These vaccines can be made using live viruses, killed viruses, or molecular subunits of the virus. When it comes to treatment, antiviral drugs can be used, but challenges arise as some viruses, including HIV, can avoid immune response and develop drug resistance.
Beyond vaccines, the development of new treatments often involves the production of target proteins in the laboratory. This process includes inserting a gene into bacteria or other cells that mass-produce the protein, which is then exposed to treatment candidates and evaluated via rapid screening technologies. Antiviral drugs are then developed to directly combat the infecting viruses. Alongside these, synthetic pesticides are used to control parasitic infections affecting animals, prominent examples being roundworm diseases and intestinal tapeworm infections. Furthermore, veterinarians engage in research to discover more about zoonotic diseases (diseases transmitted from animals to humans), such as avian flu, and methods to prevent them. Understanding the mechanisms of disease transmission and control is crucial in preventing the spread of pathogens, as seen with the H5N1 avian flu virus.