Author: Claudinne Miller
Ebola – Operation Update #1
IFRC The 16th outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has occurred in the province of Kasai. It was declared on September 4, 2025, by the Minister of Public Health, Hygiene and Prevention. As of October 6th, the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the […]
Oct 15, 2025
Ebola virus in Kasai revives 50-year-old questions on viral latency
The Lancet On Sept 4, 2025, DR Congo declared its 16th Ebola virus outbreak. The epicentre of this outbreak occurred in the Kasai province—the first resurgence in this region since 2008.1 Genomic analysis identified an Ebola virus with more than 99·5% identity to the lineage that was responsible for the first outbreak in Yambuku in 1976.2 Instead […]
Oct 15, 2025
Republic of Congo reinforces measures to curb potential Ebola outbreak
WHO Africa The Republic of Congo has stepped up measures to rapidly detect and respond to potential Ebola outbreak as neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo faces a new outbreak of the virus in Kasai Province in the central region of the country. A rapid scale up of outbreak control measures in the Democratic Republic […]
Oct 15, 2025
H5N1 influenza virus stability and transmission risk in raw milk and cheese
Nature Highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 viruses have recently spread to dairy cattle, with high levels of virus detected in milk from affected animals, raising concern about the risk posed by unpasteurized dairy products consumed by humans. Here we evaluated H5N1 virus persistence in raw-milk cheeses (n = 3 per condition) made with milk acidified to pH […]
Oct 15, 2025
Bird flu virus survives in raw-milk cheese for months
Medical News.net A new study published in Nature Medicine reveals that highly pathogenic avian influenza virus can remain infectious for up to 120 days under certain pH conditions in raw-milk cheese produced from contaminated milk. This finding raises serious public health concerns, as contaminated raw-milk products can potentially increase human exposure to the virus. The highly pathogenic […]
Oct 15, 2025
After a summer respite, bird flu is back
NBC Bird flu is spreading again as water fowl migrate. In poultry, cases are spiking earlier than expected, so some state officials are bracing for a challenging autumn. It was a quiet summer for bird flu: Egg prices fell a bit, fewer sick poultry flocks were culled on farms, and officials took a breath. “It […]
Oct 15, 2025
With milk testing and new tools, UW scientists are helping prevent bird flu outbreaks in Wisconsin and beyond
Univ of Wisconsin On a recent Thursday morning, Becky was hard at work at the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (WVDL). A few test tubes at a time, hundreds of milk samples were carefully poured, measured and prepared for testing. Becky doesn’t wear a typical lab coat or safety glasses. Why? Because Becky […]
Oct 15, 2025
France reports bird flu outbreak on northern farm
Reuters France has confirmed an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or bird flu, on a farm in the north of the country, authorities said, as Europe faces a seasonal upturn in the deadly disease. The virus was detected at a pheasant and partridge breeding farm in the village of Pihen-Les-Guines, near the port town of Calais, […]
Oct 15, 2025
More HPAI reported in Minnesota, Utah, British Columbia
Watt Poultry New cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in commercial poultry have been reported in the United States and Canada. Those include three flocks in Minnesota, two in Utah and one in British Columbia. Avian influenza in Minnesota The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service reported that the presence […]
Oct 15, 2025
Want to Call CDC to Report a Possible Disease Outbreak? Fuhgeddaboutit
MedPage Today Thinking of calling CDC to report a potential disease outbreak? Don’t bother; no one will answer, a former CDC employee said Tuesday. “If it’s an infection that is being seen in the hospital in four different patients, and the infection control nurse calls [the CDC] … You are working with the physicians, the […]
Oct 15, 2025