Author: Claudinne Miller
Current Situation: Bird Flu in Dairy Cows
CDC On April 1, CDC confirmed one human HPAI A(H5N1) infection in a person with exposure to dairy cows in Texas that were presumed to be infected with the virus. This is thought to be the first instance of likely mammal to human spread of HPAI A(H5N1) virus. In May 2024, CDC began reporting additional, […]
Jul 2, 2025
The Expanding Landscape of Foodborne Viral Threats
Food Poisoning News Viruses represent a significant and evolving challenge to global food safety, responsible for an estimated 600 million foodborne illnesses annually according to the World Health Organization. While norovirus, hepatitis A virus (HAV), and hepatitis E virus (HEV) dominate reported outbreaks, scientific attention is increasingly focused on other viruses with emerging foodborne transmission potential. These pathogens exploit gaps […]
Jul 2, 2025
Mpox virus spreads from cell-to-cell and leads to neuronal death in human neural organoids
Nature In 2022-23, the world witnessed the largest recorded outbreak of monkeypox virus (MPXV). Neurological manifestations were reported alongside the detection of MPXV DNA and MPXV-specific antibodies in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients. Here, we analyze the susceptibility of neural tissue to MPXV using human neural organoids (hNOs) exposed to a clade IIb isolate. We […]
Jul 2, 2025
New viruses identified in bats in China
Live Science Bats found near orchards harbor pathogens that could be passed to livestock or humans. Scientists in China have discovered a host of never-before-seen viruses in bats that live near humans. These viruses include two that are closely related to the deadly Nipah and Hendra viruses, which can cause severe brain inflammation and respiratory disease in […]
Jul 2, 2025
Meet the Oropouche virus. It may be visiting your city soon.
Vox Oropouche virus disease was a relatively rare illness for decades, lurking on the margins of tropical rainforests in the Caribbean and South America. Sporadic reports of an infection causing fevers, coughs, chills, and body aches emerged among people living near or moving into the jungle. A tiny insect called a midge spreads the disease, […]
Jul 2, 2025
Mapping global risk of bat and rodent borne disease outbreaks to anticipate emerging threats
Nature Future epidemics and/or pandemics may likely arise from zoonotic viruses with bat- and rodent-borne pathogens being among the prime candidates. To improve preparedness and prevention strategies, we predicted the global distribution of bat- and rodent-borne viral infectious disease outbreaks using geospatial modeling. We developed species distribution models based on published outbreak occurrence data, applying […]
Jul 2, 2025
What to Know About the Vaccine Preservative Thimerosal
NYT A C.D.C. advisory committee on Thursday voted against flu shots that contain the ingredient. An expert panel that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccines voted Thursday to no longer recommend annual flu shots that contain the preservative thimerosal. The move gives credence to the long debunked theory that the ingredient […]
Jul 2, 2025
As Mosquito Season Peaks, Officials Brace for New Normal of Dengue Cases
KFF Dengue Case Rates Rise in California, Florida, and Texas The number of dengue cases per million residents nearly doubled in the contiguous United States from 2023 to 2024 — and almost tripled in California. Florida’s big jump came earlier. Most cases were contracted abroad. As summer ushers in peak mosquito season, health and vector control […]
Jul 2, 2025
What to Know About Measles When Traveling
NYT Summer travel raises fears that the highly infectious virus will spread. Here’s how to protect yourself and your family. Measles, most unfortunately, is back in the news and in the air. In the United States, more than a thousand cases have been reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2025, the […]
Jul 1, 2025
A Texas Boy Needed Protection From Measles. The Vaccine Cost $1,400.
KFF In the early days of the West Texas measles outbreak, Thang Nguyen eyed the rising number of cases and worried. His 4-year-old son was at risk because he had received only the first of the vaccine’s two doses. So, in mid-March, he took his family to a primary care clinic at the University of […]
Jul 1, 2025