Category: Emerging Infectious Diseases
Bird flu could be on the cusp of transmitting between humans − but there are ways to slow down viral evolution
The Conversation Disease forecasts are like weather forecasts: We cannot predict the finer details of a particular outbreak or a particular storm, but we can often identify when these threats are emerging and prepare accordingly. The viruses that cause avian influenza are potential threats to global health. Recent animal outbreaks from a subtype called H5N1 have been […]
Apr 1, 2025
Fungal diseases ‘growing increasingly resistant to treatment,’ WHO says
CBC Some fungal diseases in humans no longer respond to medicines, which increases the risk of severe illness and death as well disease spread, according to a new report. On Tuesday, the World Health Organization (WHO) published what it calls its first-ever report on the lack of tests and treatments for fungal infections. Yeasts, moulds and mushrooms are […]
Apr 1, 2025
Texas measles outbreak hits 422 cases with 22 new infections confirmed over last 5 days
ABC News The measles outbreak in western Texas is continuing to grow, with 22 new cases confirmed over the last five days, bringing the total to 422 in the state, according to data published Tuesday. Almost all of the cases are in unvaccinated individuals or in individuals whose vaccination status is unknown, according to the Texas Department […]
Apr 1, 2025
Zooming in on the structure of the lethal Ebola virus
Phys.org Six years before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, an Ebola outbreak in West Africa had people fearing the possibility of a global outbreak. This was the first time many had ever heard of the virus, but since it was first identified in 1976, there have actually been more than 20 serious Ebola incidents. […]
Mar 26, 2025
Transmission dynamics of the 2022 mpox epidemic in New York City
Nature The 2022 global mpox epidemic was caused by transmission of MPXV clade IIb, lineage B.1 through sexual contact networks, with New York City (NYC) experiencing the first and largest outbreak in the United States. By performing phylogeographic analysis of MPXV genomes sampled from 757 individuals in NYC between April 2022 and April 2023, and […]
Mar 26, 2025
Influenza of avian origin confirmed in a sheep in Yorkshire
UK.gov Influenza of avian origin (H5N1) has been confirmed in a single sheep in Yorkshire. The UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer has confirmed a case of influenza of avian origin (H5N1) in a single sheep in Yorkshire following repeat positive milk testing. The case was identified following routine surveillance of co-located livestock on a premises […]
Mar 26, 2025
DRC Outbreak Linked to Malaria, Officials Confirm
News Central Africa Health officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo have confirmed that a mysterious illness responsible for over 50 deaths earlier this year was malaria. The National Public Health Institute announced late Monday that laboratory tests identified malaria as the cause of the outbreak, which killed 52 people and affected nearly 1,000 others in Equateur province. Continue reading
Mar 26, 2025
A year later, cow flu origins are an unsettling puzzle
Science It’s still unclear how H5N1 virus jumped into U.S. cattle—and why it keeps doing so. When U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) officials reported one year ago today that the H5N1 avian influenza virus had infected dairy cattle in Texas and Kansas, it seemed a freak event—a rare confluence of factors that somehow allowed a […]
Mar 26, 2025
Texas measles outbreak grows to 327 cases with 18 confirmed infections over last 5 days: Officials
ABC News The measles outbreak in western Texas is continuing to grow with 18 cases confirmed over the last five days, bringing the total to 327 cases, according to new data published Tuesday. Nearly all of the cases are in unvaccinated individuals or in individuals whose vaccination status is unknown, according to the Texas Department […]
Mar 25, 2025
Fungus labeled ‘urgent threat’ by CDC is spreading rapidly, hospital study finds
The Hill New cases of a dangerous, drug-resistant fungus have been identified in at least two states’ hospital systems. Candida auris, also called C. auris, was first identified in the U.S. in 2016. Since then, the number of cases have increased every year, jumping substantially in 2023 (the last year of data available from the Centers […]
Mar 25, 2025