Category: Animals
UK: First human case of H5N1 bird flu found in Buckfastleigh, Devon *3 UPDATES*
A person in the Buckfastleigh, Devon, area of the southwest of England has been confirmed as having contracted H5N1 bird flu, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said. More...
Sars-CoV-2 filmed attacking the brain of a bat
Sars-Cov-2 has been filmed attacking cells in a bat’s brain. More...
Vegetarian diet may provide more protection against severe Covid than triple vaccination
After adjusting for important confounders, participants who reported following plant-based diets had a 73% lower odds of moderate Covid, and those following plant-based or pescatarian diets had 59% lower odds of severe Covid. More...
Preprint: Evidence for a mouse origin of Omicron
“In this study, we identified mutations acquired by Omicron before its outbreak, and tested whether the molecular spectrum of these mutations was consistent with the cellular environment of human hosts.” More...
USA: 3 lions test positive for Sars-CoV-2 in New Orleans zoo
Three of six lions at Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, Louisiana have tested positive for Sars-CoV-2 this week, the zoo has announced. More...
Poland: Sars-CoV-2 spillover event from mink that lasted at least three months
We report the spillover of mink-adapted SARS-CoV-2 from farmed mink to humans after adaptation that lasted at least three months. More...
Preprint: Evidence for a mouse origin of the Omicron variant
Pre-outbreak Omicron mutations in the spike protein significantly overlap with mutations in mouse-adapted SARS-CoV-2. More...
Preprint: Omicron now binds to mouse ACE2
“Here, we show that the Omicron RBD binds to human ACE2 with enhanced affinity relative to the Wuhan-Hu-1 RBD and acquires binding to mouse ACE2.” More...
Belgium: Two hippos test positive for Sars-Cov-2 in Antwerp Zoo
Two hippos have tested positive for Covid-19 at Antwerp zoo, according to a press release. More...
Canada: SARS-CoV-2 found in white-tailed deer
Canada has confirmed the first detections of SARS-CoV-2 in three free-ranging white-tailed deer. More...