“Age of the panzootic: scientists warn of more devastating diseases jumping between species”
By Phoebe Weston
“Bird flu poses a threat that is “unique and new in our lifetime” because it has become a “‘panzootic” that can kill huge numbers across multiple species, experts warn. For months, highly pathogenic bird flu, or H5N1, has been circulating in dairy farms, with dozens of human infections reported among farm workers. It has now jumped into more than 48 species of mammals, from bears to dairy cows, causing mass die-offs in sea lions and elephant seal pups. Last week, the first person in the US died of the infection.
This ability to infect, spread between, and kill such a wide range of creatures has prompted some scientists to call H5N1 a “panzootic”: an epidemic that leaps species barriers and can devastate diverse animal populations, posing a threat to humans too. As shrinking habitats, biodiversity loss and intensified farming create perfect incubators for infectious diseases to jump…”
to read the full article go to
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/15/age-of-the-panzootic-scientists-warn-of-more-devastating-diseases-jumping-between-species-aoe
“Bird flu is mutating, but antivirals still work for now”
by Texas Biomedical Research Institute
“One of the earliest strains of bird flu isolated from a human in Texas shows a unique constellation of mutations that enable it to more easily replicate in human cells and cause more severe disease in mice compared to a strain found in dairy cattle, researchers from Texas Biomedical Research Institute (Texas Biomed) report in Emerging Microbes & Infections.
The finding highlights a key concern about the H5N1 strains of bird flu currently circulating in the U.S.: the speed at which the virus can mutate when introduced to a new host.”
“”The clock is ticking for the virus to evolve to more easily infect and potentially transmit from human to human, which would be a concern,” said Texas Biomed Professor Luis Martinez-Sobrido, Ph.D., whose lab specializes in influenza viruses and has been studying H5N1 since the outbreak began last year. The team has developed specialized tools and animal models to test prophylactic vaccines and therapeutic antivirals.”
to read the full article go to
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/why-mild-h5n1-bird-flu-cases-have-been-perplexing-scientist/
“Trump and Biden officials begin talks on bird flu crisis”
By Berkeley Lovelace Jr., Erika Edwards and Suzy Khimm
“Amid an escalating bird flu outbreak spreading in the United States, federal health officials have begun to brief members of the incoming Trump administration about how they’ve responded to the crisis so far.
“We sent them all of the information on our work,” said a Biden administration health official familiar with transition briefings within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
It’s the first indication that the two administrations appear to be working together to prioritize the H5N1 response.
to read the full article go to
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/trump-biden-bird-flu-crisis-meeting-transition-rcna187190
“Biden administration allocates $306m in its final days for bird flu response”
By Melody Schreiber
“Awarding funding to regional, state and local health departments is particularly important because “that seems to be an important catalyst to take action”, said Jennifer Nuzzo, professor of epidemiology and director of the Pandemic Center at Brown University School of Public Health.
“It’s often federal action of some sort, usually in the form of money, that gets states activated,” Nuzzo added.
Improving communication and data-sharing between local entities like healthcare professionals, businesses and school leaders is key for understanding patterns of disease in communities, Ranney said: “Who’s getting sick from what, when and why?””
to read the full article go to
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/trump-biden-bird-flu-crisis-meeting-transition-rcna187190