💔💔

.CDC has posted an update to its site where it is reporting #influenzaA detection in wastewater, which at this time of year is probably #H5N1 #birdflu . It plans to update weekly on Fridays.
What's going on in Northern California?
cdc.gov/flu/avianflu/h…

A piece of news I learned today: None of the 49 dairy farms with herds that have tested positive for #H5N1 #birdflu sold raw milk, according to Dept. of Agriculture.

The STAT startup panel. ⁦Allison DeAngelis⁩ interviews: Gilad Almogy, Ph.D., CEO and co-founder, Ultima Genomics
Akira Matsuno, president, chief financial officer, and co-founder, Tune Therapeutics
Dina Radenkovic, MBBS, CEO and Co-Founder, Gameto

'I went over all his almost 3000 papers and found several examples of problems and other people joined me, but he threatened to sue me,' said Bik.

She doesn't want to say his name, but other people in the room shouted it out:
#STATBreakthrough
buzzfeednews.com/article/stepha…

Most of his claims of research misconduct are ignored, says Sholto David (Sholto David), adding he was surprised when Dana-Farber took action; he partly credits media coverage, saying DFCI wouldn't have 'flinched if it hadn't been written about' #statbreakthrough

“My rendezvous with the raw milk black market: quick, easy, and unchecked by the FDA”

Upsetting story but great reporting by Nicholas Florko statnews.com/2024/05/15/bir…

NEW w/ Rachel Cohrs Zhang & Nicholas Florko: How the fragmented US food regulatory system can hamper surveillance of outbreaks like H5N1 bird flu. Lots of wild anecdotes in here, from regulators waving meat in the air to USDA & FDA duking it out over catfish. statnews.com/2024/05/14/bir…

Rick Slayman, a Massachusetts man who received the first kidney transplant from a CRISPR-edited pig, has died almost two months after the xenotransplant. trib.al/DrSGEmx

New from Sarah Owermohle : USDA will provide livestock farms up to $28k apiece to bolster protections and testing for the H5N1 bird influenza virus spreading among dairy cows. Also put $98m towards limiting interstate spread. CDC & FDA put $101m to boosted testing and surveillance.

In Texas, with H5N1 in 12 cow herds and 1 confirmed human case, the health department began offering gloves, masks, face shields, goggles, and gowns to all farms in early April.

Four took them up on it.

My latest:

statnews.com/2024/05/10/bir…

CRISPR edits fail to cure HIV patients in early test statnews.com/2024/05/10/hiv…

Incredible story from Helen Branswell 🇨🇦 here on the history of H5N1 and how it keeps throwing twists in our understanding of what flu viruses can and can't do

statnews.com/2024/05/09/bir… via STAT

Correct. Without meeting with and addressing the concerns of farmers, farmworkers, dairies, we won't have adequate surveillance, making us fly blind. WHO’s top scientist learned a hard lesson about H5N1 two decades ago: statnews.com/2024/05/07/bir… via STAT

Managing diseases in livestock in a country the size of the U.S. is a huge challenge due to the frequent and extensive movement of animals across the nation. Learn more in a piece I wrote for STAT with my colleague, Colleen Webb (CSU):
statnews.com/2024/05/07/tra…

New from Casey Ross: Google unveiled AlphaFold 3 on Wednesday, which can predict the structure of proteins and interactions with RNA, DNA, ions, and other small molecules.

statnews.com/2024/05/08/dru…

You can also hear more about AlphaFold at STAT's Breakthrough Summit next week!

So, so, so unbelievably proud of my STAT colleagues Bob Herman & Casey Ross for their impactful work exposing UnitedHealth Group's use of #AI to deny crucial medical care for vulnerable seniors The Pulitzer Prizes