Author: Claudinne Miller
U.S. to make millions of bird flu vaccine doses this summer, as cases grow
CBS News Some 4.8 million doses of flu vaccine are now being prepared for use in response to the growing U.S. outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or H5N1, officials say. The order for the doses to be filled into vials comes as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating a growing number of human cases linked […]
Jun 4, 2024
Assessing avian influenza in dairy milk
NIH Certain influenza viruses are found in wild and domestic birds, earning the disease they cause the name “bird flu.” Over the last two decades, about 900 people have been infected with an avian influenza virus called H5N1. Most of them have had close contact with infected birds. Past H5N1 strains have proven deadly for […]
Jun 4, 2024
H7 bird flu found on third poultry farm in Australia
Reuters Highly pathogenic avian influenza has been detected at a third poultry farm near Melbourne, but it is not the same strain that has spread globally and raised fears of human transmission, the Victoria state government said on Wednesday. Hundreds of thousands of birds have already been destroyed after bird flu was found at two Australian […]
Jun 4, 2024
Second bird flu outbreak in 6 days infects 103K turkeys at northwest Iowa commercial facility
DeMoines Register The second bird flu outbreak in a week was reported Sunday, with nearly 103,000 turkeys infected in northwest Iowa’s Cherokee County. The Iowa Department of Agriculture reported Tuesday, May 28 that an egg facility with 4.2 million laying hens was infected with the highly pathogenic avian influenza. On Sunday, the agency announced that 102,891 turkeys […]
Jun 4, 2024
MMR Vaccine Myths Persist Amid Rising Cases
Neuroscience A new survey found that 24% of U.S. adults incorrectly believe the MMR vaccine causes autism, despite CDC evidence to the contrary. This misconception contributes to vaccine hesitancy and rising measles cases. The survey highlights the need for better public education on vaccine safety. Key Facts: Source: University of Pennsylvania As measles cases rise across […]
Jun 4, 2024
A new discovery about carbon dioxide is challenging decades-old ventilation doctrine
STAT Carbon dioxide monitors have been around for decades. But in 2020, they became, almost overnight, a hot commodity. All of a sudden, people wanted them to help assess the safety of indoor spaces — to gauge the likelihood of breathing in coronavirus-laced particles that until very recently had been in someone else’s lungs. No […]
Jun 4, 2024
Why it’s so challenging to develop vaccines for parasitic diseases
BBC The process of making vaccines for parasites is extremely challenging – but scientists might be on the cusp of major breakthroughs. There was much celebration in January, when Cameroon became the first country in the world to roll out routine vaccination against malaria. In February, Burkina Faso followed suit. “Control of malaria has not […]
Jun 4, 2024
Don’t just blame rat fleas. Lice may have helped spread ‘black death’ plague
NPR The plague — which in the mid-14th century was also known as the Black Death — devastated swaths of Europe, killing millions in under a decade. One of the puzzles surrounding this ancient pandemic was how it spread so quickly. The common wisdom is that rat fleas were the big spreaders. But now a […]
Jun 4, 2024
Analyzing The Emergence Of Covid Variant KP.2 And Its Potential Impact
Forbes It is clear that SARS-CoV-2, the agent of the Covid-19 epidemic, is here to stay. Like influenza, an easily transmissible respiratory virus, SARS-CoV-2 mutates to evade the immune system of those who have been previously vaccinated, infected, or both. The question remains: how dangerous is each new version of SARS-CoV-2? Again, like the Flu, […]
Jun 4, 2024
New cases of Avian Influenza infect South Dakota livestock
ABC News Avian Influenza, or the Bird Flu, has been affecting livestock across the nation, and in the last 30 days, there have been five new recorded cases of H5N1, in South Dakota livestock. The infectious disease has changed in recent years to not only affect poultry but also wild mammals and dairy herds. South […]
Jun 4, 2024