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https://www.mainepublic.org/npr-news/2024-11-27/heres-why-bird-flu-fears-are-intensifying>
'Scientists believe it was roughly a year ago that an influenza virus sickening
and killing birds happened upon a new and surprisingly hospitable host in the
Texas Panhandle — dairy cattle.
That encounter was enough to set in motion today's cattle outbreak, which
scientists who study influenza warn has the potential to become another
pandemic.
The virus has already shuffled between hundreds of herds and repeatedly jumped
into humans. And, in a troubling twist, several cases have emerged in North
America without any known source of infection, most recently in a child living
in the San Francisco Bay area and a teenager in British Columbia, who remains
hospitalized in critical condition.
Genetic sequencing of that case in Canada suggests the culprit may have been a
wild bird — and points to changes in the virus that could help it more
efficiently latch on to human cells and replicate.
"This is exactly what we don't want to see," says Louise Moncla, a virologist
at the University of Pennsylvania, "The case in British Columbia shows that flu
is always going to surprise us. "
Luckily, Canadian health authorities have found no evidence the teen caught it
from a person or spread it to others. And these sort of isolated cases are not
unheard of in parts of the world where bird flu has long circulated.
But scientists are clear-eyed about the risk ahead.
With reservoirs of virus persisting in dairy cattle, poultry and wild birds,
there are ample opportunities for spillover into humans. Meanwhile, the virus
is turning up in raw milk on store shelves. And flu season is raising the
troubling prospect that bird flu could commingle with seasonal influenza.
"This virus is not so easy to get rid of," says Dr. Jürgen Richt, a veterinary
microbiologist at Kansas State University. "We will have to live with it for
some years to come."'
Via Diane A.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
