Category: Emerging Infectious Diseases
Unseasonal New World screwworm migration spurs proactive measures
Farm Progress A warmer-than-normal winter has enabled New World screwworm to overwinter in Mexico. As it inches closer to Texas, the U.S. is committed to preventing the pest from destroying its herd and wildlife. High cattle prices may be a dream come true for Texas cattleman Stephen Diebel, but the resurgence of the New World […]
Feb 25, 2026
What makes bats important reservoirs of zoonotic viruses like Nipah
Indian Express Nipah virus was first identified in 1998 during an outbreak among pig farmers in Malaysia. Later, pteropus bat populations have been identified as its primary reservoir. How do factors like ecological disruption and wildlife–human interactions contribute to the rise of infectious diseases like Nipah virus outbreaks? Human health is shaped by several existential […]
Feb 25, 2026
Nipah Virus Outbreak Has Asia on High Alert Amid Deaths in India
Science Alert An outbreak of the deadly Nipah virus in India has put many countries in Asia on high alert, given the fatality rate in humans can be between 40% and 75%. Several countries, including Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore, have introduced new screening and testing measures, after at least two people died of Nipah virus in the Indian state of West […]
Feb 25, 2026
Spain’s Mpox Surge Continues in Madrid Over Vaccination Gaps
Vax Before Travel Spain, a favorite destination for international travelers in 2026, is currently facing a concerning rise in mpox (monkeypox) cases within the European Union. Health authorities have reported an increase in infections primarily linked to the more transmissible clade Ib variant of the monkeypox virus (MPXV). According to the latest update from the […]
Feb 25, 2026
Wild Monkeys Fall Sick With Mpox After Eating Squirrels: Is This How The Virus Jumped To Humans?
IFL Science A dead squirrel, an outbreak in monkeys, and the trail of a virus. or the first time, researchers have captured direct evidence of the monkeypox virus (MPXV) jumping between two wild animal species. Detecting interspecies transmission in the wild is notoriously difficult, but this remarkable piece of scientific detective work offers insight into […]
Feb 25, 2026
Avian influenza again confirmed in poultry in Argentina
Watt Poultry A new report from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) stated that the presence of HPAI was confirmed on February 23 in the province of Buenos Aires. The affected farm raised what WOAH referred to as “heavy breeding stock.” The operator of the farm reported to the National Service of Agri-Food Health and Quality […]
Feb 25, 2026
COVID’s origins: what we do and don’t know
Nature Researchers summarize key insights from the world’s first comprehensive investigation into how a pandemic started. We are 23 of the 27 original members of the Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO) for the World Health Organization (WHO). After nearly 3.5 years of deliberations, we concluded our independent assessment of the […]
Feb 25, 2026
How Covid Quietly Rewires the Brain
Bloomberg Researchers keep discovering more about the long-term neurological effects of SARS-CoV-2. Doctors call it Ondine’s curse—a catastrophic failure of the brain stem in which breathing no longer happens automatically, especially during sleep. It’s extremely rare, typically seen only in infants with genetic mutations or adults after severe trauma, and for a long time it wasn’t […]
Feb 25, 2026
The Deaths Doctors Never Thought They’d See in the U.S.
The Atlantic For years, the worst outcomes of measles were all but unknown in America. Now they look inevitable. Of every 1,000 people the measles virus infects, it may kill as few as one to three. In a way, this can seem merciful. But the mathematics of measles is also unforgiving. The virus is estimated […]
Feb 25, 2026
Washington State: High School confirms active tuberculosis case, 130 people possibly exposed
KOMO News More than 100 people associated with Rainier Beach High School are being tested for Tuberculosis (TB) after one person was diagnosed and is now getting treatment for the serious, airborne disease. As a precaution, Public Health is recommending that about 130 people associated with the south Seattle school be evaluated, based on the amount of […]
Feb 25, 2026