A new genetic study of Ebola viruses in West Africa's epidemic, published yesterday in Nature, helps trace the disease's spread and, according to the authors, shows that the virus mutated at about the same rate observed in earlier outbreaks.
Compared with H3N2 influenza—which dominated the flu landscape this past season in the Northern Hemisphere and is often associated with more severe disease—H1N1 and B viruses do not show the same degree of global movement but persist for longer periods locally, according to a mapping study today in Nature.
Sierra Leone is reporting a spate of new Ebola cases in a new hot spot in the Kaffu Bullom part of Port Loko district, located in the western part of the country, according to official and media reports.
Egypt has reported an H9N2 avian influenza case involving a 7-year-old boy, the country's third such detection so far this year, according to a posting from ProMED Mail that is based on a notification from a United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) database. ProMED Mail is the online reporting system of the International Society for Infectious Diseases.
After going 8 days without an Ebola case, Sierra Leone since May 14 has seen a trickle of newly confirmed cases, including 2 from Port Loko, 3 from Western Area Urban, and 1 from Kambia, the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) said today in an update.
Veterinary officials in Burkina Faso and Turkey reported more highly pathogenic H5N1 avian flu outbreaks, as their counterparts in Taiwan reported that highly pathogenic H5N2 has struck 10 more locations, according to separate reports to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).
An additional case of MERS-CoV today as well as a recovery over the weekend have been reported from Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health (MOH). They bring the cumulative totals in that country since June 2012 to 983 cases, including 428 deaths, 552 recoveries, and 3 active cases.
United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Apr 25 appointed Peter Jan Graaff to lead the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER), taking the place of Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed of Mauritania, who had held the position since late December. Ould Cheikh Ahmed succeeded UNMEER's first chief, Anthony Banbury.
Saudi Arabia today reported two more MERS-Cov cases in different cities, after a weekend with no new cases.
A canine influenza outbreak affecting dogs in Chicago and other Midwest locations is being fueled by a virus closely related to Asian H3N2 strains and not H3N8 as originally thought, researchers from Cornell University and the University of Wisconsin announced yesterday.
