Avian influenza is a group of infectious diseases in birds caused by avian-adapted influenza A viruses (Orthomyxoviridae), characterized by segmented, negative-sense, single-stranded RNA genomes and diverse hemagglutinin (H) and neuraminidase (N) subtypes. Strains are classified as low or highly pathogenic based on molecular determinants, particularly in the hemagglutinin cleavage site, and associated clinical severity in poultry. Research topics include viral ecology in wild waterfowl reservoirs, transmission dynamics at the wildlife–poultry–human interface, molecular evolution and reassortment, host-range restriction mechanisms, immune escape, and risk assessment for zoonotic spillover and pandemic potential.
Ducky is dead. The International Crane Foundation announced Monday that Ducky, an endangered female whooping crane the foundation planned to release into the wilds of Wisconsin this fall, died on Thursday after becoming infected ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 29, 2025
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Bird flu hits cats particularly hard. Just last week, an infected cat was euthanized in California after eating raw pet food. But a University of Maryland-led study appearing in One Health shows promising results when an ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 18, 2025
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Federal health officials are warning cat owners about certain lots of RAWR Raw Cat Food Chicken Eats after a pet cat in San Francisco became infected with the H5N1 bird flu virus and had to be euthanized.
Plants & Animals
Sep 5, 2025
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When a disease-causing virus or other organism is transmitted from one species to another, most of the time the infection sputters and dies out. On rare occasions, the infection can perpetuate transmission in the new host ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Aug 21, 2025
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Since its emergence in US dairy cattle, highly pathogenic avian influenza (bird flu, H5N1) has defied control, spreading to other species and disrupting every stage of the dairy sector. A newly published invited review in ...
Agriculture
Aug 14, 2025
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In recent years, there has been growing concern over the H5N1 influenza virus. It was first identified in birds three decades ago and has now gradually found its way to humans. H5N1 is a strain of the influenza virus harboring ...
Cell & Microbiology
Aug 12, 2025
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The first UK study to monitor antimicrobial resistance and influenza viruses in water bodies has revealed that 92% of samples contained genes for resistance to colistin, an antibiotic of last resort.
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 31, 2025
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A new paper from a team of Cornell University researchers shows that the highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 virus causes severe mastitis and decreased milk production in dairy cows, a drop-off that may extend beyond the ...
Agriculture
Jul 16, 2025
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The H5N1 avian influenza virus has infected birds and mammals around the world. As of June 2025, 70 people have been infected, and one person has died in the United States. A new analysis suggests that the virus is evolving ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Jun 21, 2025
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104
Researchers from UConn's College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources (CAHNR) and College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) have demonstrated that a novel protein-based nanoparticle can make mRNA vaccines more effective ...
Bio & Medicine
Jun 5, 2025
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