Category: Emerging Infectious Diseases
When Is a Pandemic No Longer a Pandemic?
(Bloomberg Prognosis) What makes a pandemic a pandemic? When will the Covid pandemic no longer be considered a pandemic? Does it get downgraded to epidemic at some point? JB, Fullerton, California Today’s Q&A is a lesson in the vocabulary of epidemiology, with some assistance from our regular expert on the subject, Katrine Wallace at University of Illinois at […]
Feb 19, 2023
What is Marburg virus and should we be worried?
(The Conversation) An epidemic outbreak of Marburg virus in Equatorial Guinea, Central Africa, was confirmed this week, the first time the virus has occurred there. At least 16 cases have been detected, and nine deaths. There are no approved treatments for Marburg virus, which is closely related to Ebola virus, but vaccines are in development. Following an unprecedented […]
Feb 17, 2023
Bird flu vaccination policies by country
(Reuters) A growing number of countries are turning to vaccinations against avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu, to stem one of the world’s worst outbreaks of the deadly virus. More than 30 countries have resorted to the use of vaccination against highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) since 2005, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) said, […]
Feb 17, 2023
What Bird Flu Reminds Us About Influenza Pandemics
(MedPageToday) Amesh Adalja, MD It is inevitable that there will be a next influenza pandemic in humanity’s future. When it will occur and the identity of the culprit influenza strain are not fully answerable questions. There are myriad different avian influenza viruses constantly circulating, mutating, and regrouping in their natural waterfowl hosts. As such, the prolific […]
Feb 17, 2023
Bird flu continues to spread in mammals – what this means for humans and wildlife
(The Conversation) As bird flu continues to decimate poultry and wild bird populations around the world, the virus – a deadly strain called H5N1 – appears to be spreading to mammals. The virus has already been confirmed in foxes and otters in the UK, and more recently in four dead seals. Bird flu refers to influenza A […]
Feb 17, 2023
(PLoS Biology) Although ACE2 is the primary receptor for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, a systematic assessment of host factors that regulate binding to SARS-CoV-2 spike protein has not been described. Here, we use whole-genome CRISPR activation to identify host factors controlling cellular interactions with SARS-CoV-2. Our top hit was a TLR-related cell […]
Feb 17, 2023
How Deadly Was China’s Covid Wave?
(New York Times) Two months after China ended “zero Covid,” rough estimates suggest that between 1 and 1.5 million people died — far more than the official count. After China relaxed the world’s most stringent Covid-19 restrictions in December, the virus exploded. Hints of the surge were everywhere: Hospitals turned away patients. Crematories were overwhelmed with […]
Feb 16, 2023
Lancet Preprint Background: Previous studies have found a correlation between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and changes in brain structure and cognitive impairment, but it remains unclear whether COVID-19 causes structural changes to the brain and which specific brain regions may be affected. Herein, we conduct a Mendelian randomization (MR) study to determine this causal relationship […]
Feb 16, 2023
Covid-19 Is Now Harder to Stop and Easier to Survive
(Washington Post) To figure out what’s going on with Covid-19, a good place to start is in the sewers. Since early in the pandemic, the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority has been testing inflows to its Deer Island Wastewater Treatment Plant in Boston Harbor for the virus. The readings provide a remarkably detailed picture of the course […]
Feb 16, 2023
(Pathogens) Wild carnivore species infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus subtype H5N1 during the 2021–2022 outbreak in the Netherlands included red fox (Vulpes vulpes), polecat (Mustela putorius), otter (Lutra lutra), and badger (Meles meles). Most of the animals were submitted for testing because they showed neurological signs. In this study, the HPAI H5N1 […]
Feb 16, 2023