AUGUST 7, 2024

Spillover Events of H5N1 Led to Mammal-to-Mammal Transmission

By Krishna Ramanujan

Researchers at Cornell University provide evidence that a spillover of avian influenza from birds to dairy cattle across several U.S. states has led to mammal-to-mammal transmission—between cows and from cows to cats and a raccoon (Nature 2024 Jul 25. doi:10.1038/s41586-024-07849-4).

Using whole-genome sequencing of characterized viral strains, modeling and epidemiological information, the researchers’ determined cases of cow-to-cow transmission when infected cows