Influenza in cow's milk in America... Are we witnessing a new pandemic?

2024-05-06 2024-05-06T14:10:07Z

ArabiaWeather - Last year witnessed the transmission of the bird influenza virus to mammals, which did not initially worry scientists.

But transmission of the virus from birds to cows raises particular concerns, given that humans interact with these animals and eat their milk and meat.

In this context, Fox News reported the statements of Seema Lakdawala, a virologist and influenza transmission specialist at Emory University, who expressed her deep concern about the danger of this transmission to humans. She said:

“I'm more worried than I was before, and that's not just for the general public, it's for the dairy workers.”

People on dairy farms regularly interact with cows and their products; When these cows are infected with a virus that can cause disease in humans, the virus is able to constantly mutate and with each interaction with these animals, the virus has the opportunity to improve its ability to adapt and spread.

Warning of the spread of bird influenza virus among cows

An outbreak of avian influenza virus among cows on 34 dairy farms in nine US states has so far resulted in only one human infection, and it was very mild.

However, scientists point out that the virus had been circulating among cows for several months before it was discovered, and this concerns Seema Lakdawala, a virologist and influenza transmission specialist at Emory University. Lakdawala says that this virus is highly variable, and has now reached an important point of human-to-human convergence. And animals in terms of transmission and interaction, and this is what raises great concern.

Lakdawala explains that for the virus to cause a pandemic among humans, three basic conditions must be met:

The disease infects humans.
To be something our immune systems have never encountered before.
It spreads easily between humans, especially through the air.

Recent events have not yet confirmed that the H5N1 bird influenza virus has new capabilities in any of these categories, but scientists hint at the possibility of it developing these capabilities in the future.

An outbreak of the disease among dairy cows is an ideal environment for the development of traits that are dangerous to humans, and this is what Lakdawala is very concerned about, as an outbreak of the disease among “mammals with significant interaction with humans” represents a red flag for her.

Avian influenza virus

The bird influenza virus is characterized by unique capabilities. Unlike other viruses that mutate regularly, influenza viruses show special flexibility in changing their genetic structures, as they can even replace entire parts of genes with other viruses in the event that animals are infected with more than one type, and these changes occur on a regular basis. Random, and although most do not make the virus more dangerous to humans, there is a realistic possibility of changes that could occur between animals and humans.

Reports indicate that the bird influenza virus has been discovered on 34 dairy farms in nine US states, and this discovery raises concerns about the transmission of the virus to humans, especially since the virus may evolve rapidly and become able to transmit easily between humans. Farms are fertile environments for virus outbreaks, as workers regularly interact with cows and their products such as milk, which increases the risk of transmission.

Although the virus has not yet been proven to be significantly dangerous to humans, chances are that the virus may rapidly evolve to become more dangerous. If the virus is transmitted to humans, it may pose a serious threat to public health, especially if human immune systems are not prepared to deal with it. Therefore, it is important to work to reduce the chances of transmission of the virus between animals and humans, and to take the necessary preventive measures to prevent its possible spread.