Year: 2024
What to Know About the ‘FLiRT’ Variants of COVID-19
Time The COVID-19 lull in the U.S. may soon come to an end, as a new family of SARS-CoV-2 variants—nicknamed “FLiRT” variants—begins to spread nationwide. These variants are distant Omicron relatives that spun out from JN.1, the variant behind the surge in cases this past winter. They’ve been dubbed “FLiRT” variants based on the technical names for their […]
May 1, 2024
The Bird Flu Outbreak Has More Questions Than Answers
Bloomberg Opinion As the magnitude of the bird flu outbreak in cattle becomes clearer, so does the need to quickly get a firmer grip on some basic facts. Namely, how far this H5N1 virus has spread, how it is spreading, and where this situation is likely to go next. The Covid-weary public also wants to […]
May 1, 2024
Deadly tick-borne disease confirmed in Mass. town
MASS Live A rare deadly tick-borne disease was confirmed in a Massachusetts town. Powassan virus, according to a release. And they are warning residents to take precautions. Powassan virus, like Lyme, is transmitted through infected ticks. The virus is considered rare, but the health department said the number of reported cases of people sick from […]
May 1, 2024
More than half of cats died after drinking raw milk from bird flu-infected cows
CBS News Video
May 1, 2024
If Bird Flu Spreads, These Workers Will See It First
NYT H5N1 is in a better position than ever to move between species and spill over aggressively into humans: This bird flu virus is now thought to have been spreading among dairy cows for many months, and federal regulators have found viral fragments circulating widely in the commercial milk supply chain across the United States (though live virus […]
May 1, 2024
A Rare Double Brood Emergence Of Cicadas Has Begun
Science Friday Two cicada broods on 13- and 17-year cycles coincide this spring, meaning trillions of buzzing insects across the South and Midwest. It has begun. Legions of cheese-puff-sized insects have started to climb out of the dirt after spending more than a decade underground sucking sap from tree roots. Over the next month and […]
May 1, 2024
Scientists tried to give people COVID — and failed
Nature Researchers deliberately infect participants with SARS-CoV-2 in ‘challenge’ trials — but high levels of immunity complicate efforts to test vaccines and treatments. When Paul Zimmer-Harwood volunteered to be intentionally infected with SARS-CoV-2, he wasn’t sure what to expect. He was ready for a repeat of his first brush with COVID-19, through a naturally acquired […]
May 1, 2024
What do we know about covid-19’s effects on the gut?
BMJ What gastrointestinal symptoms can covid-19 cause? Lack of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, and abdominal pain. These may not be the symptoms people expect with covid, but around 50% of people experience them after SARS-CoV-2 infection, and in some people they’re the only symptoms.1 Gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms may be the first sign of infection or may […]
May 1, 2024
Bird Flu Virus Has Been Spreading in U.S. Cows for Months
Scientific American A strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza has been silently spreading in US cattle for months, according to preliminary analysis of genomic data. The outbreak is likely to have begun when the virus jumped from an infected bird into a cow, probably around late December or early January. This implies a protracted, undetected spread of the virus — suggesting […]
Apr 30, 2024
The jump in measles cases in 2023 is ‘very concerning’ says WHO official
NPR Over the past 20 years, there’s been a lot of progress when it comes to combating measles. But the World Health Organization’s latest global numbers, released this past weekend, are “very concerning,” says Dr. Patrick O’Connor, the WHO’s medical officer for measles and rubella. Measles cases increased worldwide from more than 170,000 cases in 2022 to […]
Apr 30, 2024