Timely and relevant global health security news curated by GCHS
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Featured Headlines
- Here’s What to Know About NB.1.8.1, the COVID Variant Surging in AsiaMedPageToday It will probably become dominant in the U.S. this summer, experts say. A new COVID variant driving a surge of infections in China and other parts of Asia has been detected by U.S. airport screening programsopens in a new tab or window, and experts say it may drive a summer wave in the U.S. NB.1.8.1… Read more: Here’s What to Know About NB.1.8.1, the COVID Variant Surging in Asia
- Thailand’s Covid-19 cases surpass 250,000 as new variant spreadsVN News Thailand warns of rising Covid-19 cases driven by new variant NB.1.8.1, urging the public to stay cautious and follow health measures. Data from May 30 showed 41,283 new cases, bringing the total so far this year to 257,280 cases, with two new deaths, raising the total fatalities to 52. The Bangkok metropolitan area… Read more: Thailand’s Covid-19 cases surpass 250,000 as new variant spreads
- Public Health Preparedness:HHS Needs a Coordinated National Approach for Diagnostic Testing for Pandemic ThreatsGAO During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Health and Human Services struggled to lead the nation’s testing efforts, which required close coordination with public and private stakeholders. This was one reason we added HHS’s leadership of public health emergencies to our High Risk List. We convened a roundtable of 19 experts to discuss ways HHS… Read more: Public Health Preparedness:HHS Needs a Coordinated National Approach for Diagnostic Testing for Pandemic Threats
- Arizona: Third commercial farm tests positive for bird flu12 News A third commercial farm in Arizona has tested positive for avian flu, according to the Arizona Department of Agriculture. A third Maricopa County commercial farm has tested positive for Avian Influenza, according to the Arizona Department of Agriculture. Poultry at the latest farm to test positive started showing signs of the bird flu… Read more: Arizona: Third commercial farm tests positive for bird flu
- Tracking the Threat: How a New H5N1 Virus Variant Took Hold Across EuropeGlobal Biodefense New genomic analyses trace the origins and spread of the EA-2023-DG H5N1 reassortant, highlighting evolving zoonotic risks and urgent surveillance needs. A new scientific study published in Emerging Infectious Diseases has mapped the emergence and spread of a novel highly pathogenic avian influenza A(H5N1) virus genotype—EA-2023-DG—across Europe. Conducted by an international team of researchers led by the… Read more: Tracking the Threat: How a New H5N1 Virus Variant Took Hold Across Europe
- China reports a new H5N1 caseChina Center for Health Protection Since the previous issue of Avian Influenza Report (AIR), there was one new human caseof avian influenza A(H5N1) from Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China reportedby the World Health Organization (WHO) on 23 May 2025. From 2015 to 2024, 0 to145 confirmed human cases of avian influenza A(H5N1) were reported to… Read more: China reports a new H5N1 case
- A New Covid Variant Is Rising Fast. Here’s What We Know About NB.1.8.1Gizmodo A new Omicron offshoot is spreading fast across Australia and Asia, prompting renewed concerns about the covid-19 pandemic. As we enter the colder months in Australia, covid is making headlines again, this time due to the emergence of a new variant: NB.1.8.1. Last week, the World Health Organization designated NB.1.8.1 as a “variant under monitoring”, owing to its… Read more: A New Covid Variant Is Rising Fast. Here’s What We Know About NB.1.8.1
- Cambodia reports 11-year-old boy is country’s fourth bird flu death this yearWFMJ An 11-year-old boy in Cambodia died from bird flu, the country’s fourth victim of four confirmed cases of the infection this year, the Health Ministry announced Wednesday. The ministry issued a statement saying laboratory tests from the Pasteur Institute of Cambodia confirmed the boy, who lived in a village in the western province of Kampong… Read more: Cambodia reports 11-year-old boy is country’s fourth bird flu death this year
Updates on ongoing disease outbreaks
- Bangladesh reports first bird flu outbreak since 2018The Poultry Site Bangladesh reported a first outbreak of highly pathogenic bird flu on a farm since 2018, the World Organisation for Animal Health said on Tuesday, citing local authorities. Highly pathogenic avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, has spread around the globe in the past years, including in the United States, leading to the… Read more: Bangladesh reports first bird flu outbreak since 2018
- Arizona: Third commercial farm tests positive for bird flu12 News A third commercial farm in Arizona has tested positive for avian flu, according to the Arizona Department of Agriculture. A third Maricopa County commercial farm has tested positive for Avian Influenza, according to the Arizona Department of Agriculture. Poultry at the latest farm to test positive started showing signs of the bird flu… Read more: Arizona: Third commercial farm tests positive for bird flu
- Tracking the Threat: How a New H5N1 Virus Variant Took Hold Across EuropeGlobal Biodefense New genomic analyses trace the origins and spread of the EA-2023-DG H5N1 reassortant, highlighting evolving zoonotic risks and urgent surveillance needs. A new scientific study published in Emerging Infectious Diseases has mapped the emergence and spread of a novel highly pathogenic avian influenza A(H5N1) virus genotype—EA-2023-DG—across Europe. Conducted by an international team of researchers led by the… Read more: Tracking the Threat: How a New H5N1 Virus Variant Took Hold Across Europe
- Study: Live bird flu virus can survive in raw milk for a weekAg Daily A new lab study has found that the H5N1 avian influenza virus can remain infectious in raw milk for more than a day at room temperature and over a week when refrigerated, raising significant concerns about the potential for zoonotic transmission through unpasteurized dairy products. Published May 28 on the preprint server medRxiv, the non-peer-reviewed… Read more: Study: Live bird flu virus can survive in raw milk for a week
- Brazil not testing cows for bird flu despite dairy cases in USReuters Brazil has not yet tested cows for bird flu, despite hundreds of cases in the dairy herd in the U.S., because it is focusing on poultry outbreaks after its first confirmed case on a farm this month, the country’s chief veterinarian said on Tuesday. Brazil, the world’s largest chicken exporter, confirmed its first outbreak… Read more: Brazil not testing cows for bird flu despite dairy cases in US
- Here’s What to Know About NB.1.8.1, the COVID Variant Surging in AsiaMedPageToday It will probably become dominant in the U.S. this summer, experts say. A new COVID variant driving a surge of infections in China and other parts of Asia has been detected by U.S. airport screening programsopens in a new tab or window, and experts say it… Read more: Here’s What to Know About NB.1.8.1, the COVID Variant Surging in Asia
- What do we know about the new Omicron subvariant of COVID, NB.1.8.1?University of Chicago Medicine Since COVID-19 first appeared, different variants of the virus that causes the illness have emerged, including Omicron, which was first identified in 2021. A new form of the Omicron variant has recently appeared in the United States, with the potential to cause… Read more: What do we know about the new Omicron subvariant of COVID, NB.1.8.1?
- Measles is making a comeback: Can we stop it?Harvard Health Seven things to know about the recent measles outbreaks. Has the recent news about measles outbreaks in the US surprised you? Didn’t it seem like we were done with measles? In the US, widespread vaccination halted the ongoing spread of measles more than 20 years ago, a major public health achievement. Before an effective vaccine… Read more: Measles is making a comeback: Can we stop it?
- Measles Is Now Showing Up in WastewaterTime Magazine Measles cases in the U.S. have been rare in recent decades, thanks to a strong childhood vaccination program. But a few cases inevitably pop up each year as travelers bring the virus in from other countries and infect unvaccinated people, primarily children. Those cases are no longer blips. Now that the measles vaccination rate… Read more: Measles Is Now Showing Up in Wastewater
- How measles tore through a remote West Texas cityNBC News SEMINOLE, Texas — On a Saturday in mid-March, Dr. Ben Edwards put on his scrubs and drove to a sheet metal building in this tiny West Texas city to treat children with measles. Red spots mottled his face; Edwards was sick with measles, too. An outbreak of the disease was swelling in Gaines… Read more: How measles tore through a remote West Texas city
- Characteristics of the first confirmed case of human infection with mpox virus clade Ib in ChinaNature Mpox clade Ib is significant as it is associated with human cases and plays a key role in understanding the transmission and public health implications of mpox outbreaks. Here we present a case… Read more: Characteristics of the first confirmed case of human infection with mpox virus clade Ib in China
- Sierra Leone Fights MpoxAfrica CDC Sierra Leone is the latest addition to the Incident Management Support Team (IMST) list of the most mpox-hit nations. Skyrocketing cases are triggering concern across Africa. Sierra Leone recorded its first case… Read more: Sierra Leone Fights Mpox
- Research at risk: Better testing for tick-borne diseasesCornell University Laura Goodman was close to finalizing a prototype of a new test that can detect any tick-borne disease. Unlike some current tests, it could provide results even before symptoms occur – and even for unknown diseases. That’s important, because ticks around the world can potentially transmit hundreds of disease agents, some of them… Read more: Research at risk: Better testing for tick-borne diseases
- Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome May Be Driven by Remnants of InfectionNorthwestern Scientists learn why the body may continue to respond to an invisible threat long after bacterial death. Symptoms that persist long after Lyme disease is treated are not uncommon — a 2022 study found that 14 percent of patients who were diagnosed and treated early with antibiotic therapy would still develop Post Treatment Lyme Disease (PTLD). Yet… Read more: Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome May Be Driven by Remnants of Infection
- A Potentially Life-Threatening Disease Caused by Ticks Is Expanding to New Parts of AmericaSmithsonian Magazine Babesiosis typically occurs in the Northeast and the Upper Midwest, but new research suggests rare cases are emerging in the mid-Atlantic region including Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. Babesiosis is a rare, tick-borne disease caused by a parasite that attacks the red blood cells and can lead to flu-like symptoms such as fever, body… Read more: A Potentially Life-Threatening Disease Caused by Ticks Is Expanding to New Parts of America
Emerging Infectious Disease Headlines
- Research at risk: Better testing for tick-borne diseasesCornell University Laura Goodman was close to finalizing a prototype of a new test that can detect any tick-borne disease. Unlike some current tests, it could provide results even before… Read more: Research at risk: Better testing for tick-borne diseases
- We finally may be able to rid the world of mosquitoes. But should we?Washington Post Gene editing holds the potential of suppressing mosquito species that carry deadly diseases — and raises ethical questions. They buzz, they bite, and they cause some of the… Read more: We finally may be able to rid the world of mosquitoes. But should we?
- Increasing Predominance of Norovirus GII.17 over GII.4, United States, 2022–2025CDC Norovirus is the leading cause of acute gastroenteritis outbreaks in the United States (1). Genetically, noroviruses are classified into 10 genogroups (GI–GX) and further into 48 genotypes and 60… Read more: Increasing Predominance of Norovirus GII.17 over GII.4, United States, 2022–2025
- Will norovirus surge early again this year? CDC urges tracking of new strain.CBS News After years of largely predictable norovirus waves, the emergence of a new strain might have disrupted the seasonal pattern of outbreaks from this notorious stomach bug, suggests a new report… Read more: Will norovirus surge early again this year? CDC urges tracking of new strain.
- Understanding How a Rare Brain Wasting Disease Hides in Neurons For DecadesYale Medicine In April of this year, three people in Oregon developed Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a rare, fatal neurological condition that is similar to bovine spongiform encephalopathy, also known as… Read more: Understanding How a Rare Brain Wasting Disease Hides in Neurons For Decades
- Aspergillus: The Fungi That Can Eat Humans ‘Inside Out’, Spark A PandemicNDTV Aspergillus species are “widespread environmental saprotrophs” that can cause severe infections in humans, livestock, and plants. As global temperatures continue to rise, Aspergillus, an infection-causing fungi responsible for millions… Read more: Aspergillus: The Fungi That Can Eat Humans ‘Inside Out’, Spark A Pandemic
Read more Emerging Infectious Diseases
- Searching for clues in the genome: What ancient DNA reveals about the history of epidemicsFriedrich-Loeffler-Institut How did the devastating epidemics of plague and tuberculosis come about – and what can we learn from them today? Renowned paleogeneticist Prof. Dr. Johannes Krause, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in… Read more: Searching for clues in the genome: What ancient DNA reveals about the history of epidemics
- Black Death Plague That Killed Millions Became Less Fatal because of This Genetic TweakScientific American Reducing the copies of one gene in the bubonic plague bacterium, Yersinia pestis, made it less deadly but potentially more transmissible. A small genetic change makes the bacterium that caused the plague less fatal but… Read more: Black Death Plague That Killed Millions Became Less Fatal because of This Genetic Tweak
- PET imaging reveals long-term heart and lung damage from COVID-19Health Imaging New PET imaging data highlight the long-lasting impact of COVID-19, revealing changes to the heart and lungs that are not detectable by standard medical assessments. The inflammatory alterations observed could indicate that individuals… Read more: PET imaging reveals long-term heart and lung damage from COVID-19
- Moderna’s new lower-dose COVID-19 vaccine approved by FDAMedical Express Moderna’s new vaccine (mNexspike [COVID-19 Vaccine, mRNA]) represents a significant step forward in the development of next-generation coronavirus vaccines, the Associated Press reported. The innovative design of mNexspike allows for a much lower dose, about one-fifth… Read more: Moderna’s new lower-dose COVID-19 vaccine approved by FDA
- CDC official overseeing COVID-19 vaccine recommendations resignsMedPage Today A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official said Tuesday she was resigning from her role overseeing updates to the agency’s COVID-19 vaccine recommendations, following an order by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to force an… Read more: CDC official overseeing COVID-19 vaccine recommendations resigns
- Information Inoculation: Defending Against Medical Myths: Why we need to fight misinformation about vaccines | Ethan LindenbergerTED Podcast Ethan Lindenberger never got vaccinated as a kid. So one day, he went on Reddit and asked a simple question: “Where do I go to get vaccinated?” The post went viral, landing Lindenberger in the middle of a… Read more: Information Inoculation: Defending Against Medical Myths: Why we need to fight misinformation about vaccines | Ethan Lindenberger
- Separating Snake Oil From ScienceThe Dispatch When the lines between expert and huckster are increasingly blurry, how do we determine what’s authoritative? Health communication—especially across social media—has become that pooling equilibrium. It used to be the case that when the results of scientific studies were… Read more: Separating Snake Oil From Science
- Post-COVID ‘revenge spending’ appears to be on the way outWTOP After COVID restrictions lifted, many of us made up for lost time by shopping, leading to a trend known as “revenge spending.” Now, with uncertainty surrounding the economy, it appears many are turning in the opposite direction and putting a… Read more: Post-COVID ‘revenge spending’ appears to be on the way out
- Long COVID Is Fueling a Mental Health Crisis in ChildrenNeuroscience News A new study reveals that nearly 40% of children with long COVID are experiencing significant symptoms of anxiety or depression, many for the first time. Using validated mental health screening tools, researchers found that 1 in 4 children… Read more: Long COVID Is Fueling a Mental Health Crisis in Children
Interesting and Sometimes Funny
- Are you a mosquito magnet? It’s because of how you smell.Washington Post Your body is a big protein shake that smells like stinky feet for hungry mosquitoes. Some people are magnets for mosquitoes, emitting a tantalizing combination of chemicals that invites the pesky insects to dine on them. Researchers at Rockefeller University in New York found people who have higher levels of certain acids on… Read more: Are you a mosquito magnet? It’s because of how you smell.