Diseases & Outbreaks News and Discussions

[weatheriscool]

[wjfox]

Next pandemic likely to be caused by flu virus, scientists warn

Sat 20 Apr 2024 09.52 BST

Influenza is the pathogen most likely to trigger a new pandemic in the near future, according to leading scientists.

[...]

The belief that influenza is the world’s greatest pandemic threat is based on long-term research showing it is constantly evolving and mutating, said Cologne University’s Jon Salmanton-García, who carried out the study.

[...]

Last week, the World Health Organization raised fears about the alarming spread of the H5N1 strain of influenza that is causing millions of cases of avian flu across the globe. This outbreak began in 2020 and has led to the deaths or killing of tens of millions of poultry and has also wiped out millions of wild birds.

Most recently, the virus has spread to mammal species, including domestic cattle which are now infected in 12 states in the US, further increasing fears about the risks to humans. The more mammalian species the virus infects, the more opportunities it has to evolve into a strain that is dangerous to humans, Daniel Goldhill, of the Royal Veterinary College in Hatfield, told the journal Nature last week.

The appearance of the H5N1 virus in cattle was a surprise, added virologist Ed Hutchinson, of Glasgow University. "Pigs can get avian flu but until recently cattle did not. They were infected with their own strains of the disease. So the appearance of H5N1 in cows was a shock."

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/ ... tists-warn

[wjfox]

[wjfox]

First case of walrus dying from bird flu recorded in Arctic

Virus has already killed other mammals including sea lions and seals, while also taking toll on farm animals

Tue 30 Apr 2024 06.01 BST

The first case of a walrus dying from bird flu has been detected on one of Norway’s Arctic islands, a researcher has said.

The walrus was found last year on Hopen island in the Svalbard archipelago, Christian Lydersen, of the Norwegian Polar Institute, told AFP.

Tests carried out by a German laboratory revealed the presence of bird flu, Lydersen said. The sample was too small to determine whether it was the H5N1 or the H5N8 strain.

“It is the first time that bird flu has been recorded in a walrus,” Lydersen said.

About six dead walrus were found last year in the Svalbard islands, about 1,000km (620 miles) from the north pole and halfway between mainland Norway and the north pole.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/ ... ic-islands

[caltrek]

Cholera is Making a Comeback — and the World Doesn’t Have Enough Vaccines
by Ellen Ioanes
May 2, 2024

Introduction:

(Vox) Amid a global resurgence of cholera, the world is fighting with one hand tied behind its back.

The global stockpile of the oral cholera vaccine — a supply whose needs are difficult to predict and fill anyway — has dwindled to nearly nothing after the Indian drug manufacturer that produced about 15 percent of the world’s supply stopped making the vaccine last year. While other companies are setting up new production capacity, the stockpile is now effectively nonexistent. Demand is so great that as soon as doses are produced, they must immediately ship to one of the world’s current cholera hot spots.

This crisis is symptomatic of a larger problem: the persistent lack of political will and financial investment to dramatically reduce cholera deaths.

Cholera flourishes in areas where there is contaminated water, poor sanitation, and people living in crowded conditions — like the city of Rafah, currently home to more than 1 million Palestinians displaced by Israel’s war in Gaza. Cholera has not yet been detected there, since no one from outside Gaza can bring it in, but an outbreak would be catastrophic given the decimation of Gaza’s health care system and the lack of access to humanitarian goods like clean water and medication.

The disease is typically spread when an infected person or people contaminate a water source by defecating in or near it. People get sick after drinking the contaminated water, suffering from acute diarrhea and vomiting — which can, without treatment, kill an infected person within a day.

Read more here: https://www.vox.com/world-politics/241 ... -conflict

[wjfox]

USDA reports more H5N1 detections in poultry, wild birds

Lisa Schnirring
May 7, 2024

In its latest updates, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) reported more H5N1 avian flu detections in poultry and wild birds, including several pigeons in Michigan's Ionia County, an area where the virus has been reported in dairy cows.

In other US developments, a top official from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) yesterday urged state health and veterinary officials to ensure that personal protective equipment (PPE) is available to workers on dairy farms, poultry farms, and slaughterhouses.

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/avian-influe ... wild-birds

[Time_Traveller]

South West Water refuses to say when boil water notice will be lifted after disease outbreak

Thursday 16 May 2024 17:20, UK



A South West Water boss has refused to give a timeline on when a notice to boil tap water will be lifted after a parasite was found in a key reservoir.

Speaking to Sky News, Laura Flowerdue, the company's chief customer officer, confirmed the suggestion it was likely a broken air valve that had been contaminated by animal faeces that had caused the incident that had left dozens ill and thousands unable to drink tap water.

However, she refused to give a timeframe on how long the incident would run on for - leaving thousands of residents facing an uncertain future.

She said: "We're still working through the operational processes to ensure we can absolutely link the root causes.

"We then need to take steps to repair any damage and then make sure we flush any issues through the network ... before we lift the notice."

https://news.sky.com/story/south-west-w ... k-13137217

[firestar464]

Could bird flu in cows lead to a human outbreak? Slow response worries scientists

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01416-7

[weatheriscool]

BREAKING: Australia is now reporting the first case of a human infected with bird flu.
https://x.com/PeterSweden7/status/1793244317567336623

[caltrek]

Could bird flu in cows lead to a human outbreak? Slow response worries scientists

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01416-7

More on that:

Tracing Bird Flu’s Ground Zero on Texas Dairy Farms
by Amy Maxmen
May 27, 2024

Introduction:

(Undark) IN EARLY FEBRUARY, dairy farmers in the Texas Panhandle began to notice sick cattle. The buzz soon reached Darren Turley, executive director of the Texas Association of Dairymen: “They said there is something moving from herd to herd.”

Nearly 60 days passed before veterinarians identified the culprit: a highly pathogenic strain of the bird flu virus, H5N1. Had it been detected sooner, the outbreak might have been swiftly contained. Now it has spread to at least eight other states, and it will be hard to eliminate.

At the moment, the bird flu hasn’t adapted to spread from person to person through the air like the seasonal flu. That’s what it would take to give liftoff to another pandemic. This lucky fact could change, however, as the virus mutates within each cow it infects. Those mutations are random, but more cows provide more chances of stumbling on ones that pose a grave risk to humans.

Why did it take so long to recognize the virus on high-tech farms in the world’s richest country? Because even though H5N1 has circulated for nearly three decades, its arrival in dairy cattle was most unexpected. “People tend to think that an outbreak starts at Monday at 9 a.m. with a sign saying, ‘Outbreak has started,’” said Jeremy Farrar, chief scientist at the World Health Organization. “It’s rarely like that.”

By investigating the origins of outbreaks, researchers garner clues about how they start and spread. That information can curb the toll of an epidemic and, ideally, stop the next one. On-the-ground observations and genomic analyses point to Texas as ground zero for this outbreak in cattle. To backtrack events in Texas, KFF Health News spoke with more than a dozen people, including veterinarians, farmers, and state officials.

Read more here: https://undark.org/2024/05/27/bird-flu ... ms-texas/

[caltrek]

Scientists Developing mRNA-Based Vaccine Against H5N1 Bird Flu
May 28, 2024

Introduction:

(UNMC) An experimental mRNA vaccine against the H5N1 avian flu is highly effective in preventing severe illness and death in lab animals, researchers report.

The vaccine could help fight the H5N1 bird flu outbreaks now spreading in wild birds, poultry and cows in the United States, researchers said.

Stopping those outbreaks is key to preventing the H5N1 flu from leaping into humans, researchers said.

The vaccine was created using the same techniques that produced the COVID vaccines.

“The mRNA technology allows us to be much more agile in developing vaccines; we can start creating a mRNA vaccine within hours of sequencing a new viral strain with pandemic potential,” said senior researcher Scott Hensley, a professor of microbiology at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, in Philadelphia.

Read more here: https://www.unmc.edu/healthsecurity/tr ... ird-flu/

[firestar464]

Glad to see them working on this before it becomes a big threat.

[caltrek]

A Third Human Bird Flu Case Is Confirmed In US, With A New Set of Symptoms
by Laura Simmons
May 31, 2024

Introduction:

(IFL Science) A third case of bird flu has been confirmed in a dairy farm worker in the USA, the second identified in the state of Michigan. In contrast to the previous two cases, the infected individual has reportedly been experiencing traditional flu-like symptoms, though officials say they are now recovering.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed on May 30 that another human case of bird flu has been identified. As with the previous two US cases, the infected person was a farm worker in the dairy industry, and it’s thought likely they contracted the virus after exposure to an infected cow.

The CDC stressed there is no evidence the three reported cases are linked in any way. They say the risk to the general public “remains low” but that people should take care when coming into contact with animals, especially if they are dead or appear sick.

“People should also avoid unprotected exposures to animal poop, bedding (litter), unpasteurized (“raw”) milk, or materials that have been touched by, or close to, birds or other animals with suspected or confirmed A(H5N1) virus,” the agency adds.

The dairy farm H5N1 outbreak has now hit nine states, according to data from the US Department of Agriculture. There had been 22 separate reports of infected cattle in Michigan at the time of writing. The two human cases of infection in the state occurred on different farms.

Read more here: https://www.iflscience.com/a-third-hum ... oms-74455

[caltrek]

Mosquitos Carrying West Nile Virus Found in San Fernando Valley
by Dean Fioresi
June 1, 2024

Introduction:

(CBS) Los Angeles County health officials have confirmed the first positive sample of West Nile virus drawn from a mosquito trap.
The sample was collected from a trap in the Winnetka area of the San Fernando Valley, which marks the first positive sample reported in the area this year.

"While the presence of West Nile Virus in our community is not unusual, this early detection serves as a critical reminder for all residents to take preventative actions," said Steve Vetrone, the Director of Scientific-Technical Services for the Greater Los Angeles County Vector Control District. "We urge everyone to protect themselves from mosquito bites and to eliminate standing water around their homes where mosquitos can breed."

Officials say that the Culex mosquito, which is most active during dusk and dawn, is capable of transmitting the virus. It is the "primary vector for West Nile in the midwestern and western states," according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

There is no human vaccine for the virus, so residents are urged to be proactive against mosquito bites by wearing repellant. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends products that contain the active ingredients DEET, Picaridin, IR3535 or Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus.

Read more here: https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other ... snnews11

[weatheriscool]

[firestar464]

This is just a sensationalist rehash of everything that's already been stated in this thread.

[weatheriscool]

[Time_Traveller]

Urgent E coli health warning as more than 100 cases linked to ‘nationally distributed’ food

4 minutes ago

The UK’s public health authority has sounded the alarm over E-coli poisoning after an outbreak of more than 100 cases reported in less than two weeks.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said on Thursday that it is likely the outbreak is linked to “a nationally distributed food item or multiple food items.”

It said there is no evidence the outbreak is linked to open farms, drinking water, or swimming in contaminated seawater, lakes or rivers.

The health authourity confirmed there have been 113 confirmed cases of Shiga toxin-producing E-coli (STEC), associated with the outbreak, since 25 May. 81 cases are in England, 18 in Wales, 13 in Scotland and one in Northern Ireland.

The cases range from children two to 79-years-olds. The majority of cases are described as young adults.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/heal ... 57982.html

[wjfox]

[wjfox]

Two-in-one flu and Covid jab passes advanced trial

6 minutes ago

Drug company Moderna says its combined flu and Covid vaccine, which targets the two diseases in a single shot, has passed a vital part of final-stage scientific checks.

The phase-three trial shows the vaccine arms the body with protective antibodies.

And it does so as effectively as separate flu and Covid shots, results suggest.

Fewer injections would be more convenient and simpler, Moderna says.

Chief executive Stephane Bancel told BBC News he hoped the messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine could be made widely available in 2026 - or perhaps, 2025.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ck55l4rk8z1o