Over the past 30 days, avian flu outbreaks have resulted in the death of approximately 3.5 million chickens, turkeys and ducks.
Matthew Hatcher/AFP/Getty Images
Hide caption
Caption transition
Matthew Hatcher/AFP/Getty Images
When birds fly south for the winter, they bring with them some unwelcome cargo: the H5N1 virus, or avian flu.
There has been a virus outbreak in the last 30 days. Flock of 66 poultryThis resulted in the deaths of more than 3.5 million turkeys, chickens and ducks, a sharp increase compared to the summer months. The virus can easily spread when infected wild birds mix with commercial or backyard flocks.
States in the central U.S. are currently being hit the hardest. But scientists expect more outbreaks to occur in other parts of the country, given the birds’ migration patterns.
If not taken seriously, the fallout could have consequences beyond rising egg prices. Influenza researchers fear a repeat of last year, when nearly 70 cases, including one death, were reported for the first time in the United States.
“Of course we will see human infections just as we did a year ago.” semad lawI am a virologist at Emory University who studies avian influenza. “Nothing substantively has changed that would suggest otherwise.”
No human cases have been reported since the beginning of the year, but scientists involved in tracking the virus say they have poor visibility into what is happening to animals or humans. This is because the federal government has reduced surveillance and communications.
“We are not in a good position to monitor the situation,” he says. Wendy PuryearVirologist at Tufts University. ““I’ve been in the weeds since I arrived here in the United States, and I’m finding myself in a very uncomfortable place.”
A scaled-back federal response.
Puryear says: Influenza Network Researchers were in constant contact with colleagues at federal health agencies about H5N1 to set research priorities and discuss changes in the virus.
But now she says: “Under the Trump administration, much of its infrastructure has been completely shut down or significantly disrupted due to staff cuts, early retirement and other policies.
In fact, Puryear recalls a recent meeting comprised entirely of colleagues where it was announced that research involving H5N1 in humans had to be halted due to administration funding cuts.
“It was a very depressing meeting,” she says. “They were closing the door one by one.”
Another pressing problem: Data coming out of federally run labs that perform genetic sequencing of viruses collected from infected animals is slowly slowing down, even before the government shutdown. Dr. Keith PaulsenHe runs the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.
He said the loss of USDA staff and the fact that communication with scientists required “prior approval” created obstacles at a time when the threat of runoff from wildlife is increasing.
The lockdown has only made the situation worse.
For example, the network of veterinary laboratories responsible for testing has suspended regular meetings due to the closure, Poulsen says.
“Shutdowns pour gas into a smoldering fire and leave us vulnerable,” he says. “It’s a national security issue.”
USDA did not respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s influenza team has not been affected by the staffing reductions and that responses to urgent public health threats can continue during the closure.
A virus that is difficult to contain on farms
According to reported data, cases in dairy cattle seems to be relatively rare In recent months. no way USDA Program Rules set during the Biden administration to detect avian flu in dairy milk will remain in place, as will rules requiring cows to be tested before moving across state lines.
However, it is unclear how much routine testing is actually done on cattle. Some, like Lakdawala, speculate that the decline in reported cases may be due to a lack of testing.
The dairy farm’s business model relies on the movement of cattle between farms and new research from Lakdawala’s team. Provides a sobering picture Why it’s so difficult to eradicate viruses from farms.
They found that the substance was widespread in the air of milking parlors, throughout equipment, and sometimes even in waste streams used to clean barn facilities for cows.
Dairy cows, including those showing little or no symptoms, are “excreting it through their milk at very high levels,” she says. “There are too many viruses in the environment. These cows are exposed to viruses. Of course they will get infected.”
As far as scientists can tell, the widely circulating H5N1 strain has not seen the kind of mutation that could easily infect humans.
But Lakdawala said conditions on farms with infected cattle were clearly dangerous for workers, who inhaled H5N1 particles, which inherently become aerosolized and remain infectious.
Karen Martin, an epidemiologist with the Minnesota Department of Health, which has seen about two dozen outbreaks at farms since mid-September, said about 35 people who were exposed are being monitored in case they develop symptoms. The department has contact with key personnel in the CDC Influenza Division in case assistance is needed.
“What I’m concerned about is that we continue to have the resources to respond to this. We’re maintaining that right now,” she says.
Demand better testing for farm workers
Testing farm workers, the group most at risk of contracting or spreading the virus, has been problematic since the beginning of the outbreak.
Although some humans have required hospitalization, most are mild, often presenting as eye infections or other symptoms that can be easily overlooked.
at published paper Last week, CDC scientists called for “robust data collection” on people likely to be asymptomatically infected to better guide the public health response. one small study Since last year, evidence has been found that 7% of dairy workers in Michigan and Colorado have previously been infected with avian flu.
This type of long-term research often requires the consent of undocumented farmers and workers. And he said that’s unlikely to happen now due to fears of an immigration crackdown by the Trump administration. Bethany Boggess Alcoter We work with the National Agricultural Health Center.
“It definitely seems more intense than before. There were already a lot of people reluctant to get tested,” she says.
When she interviewed California farm workers about bird flu this fall, she said many were too afraid to leave their homes. A survey of hundreds of workers in three states found that about 20% had symptoms at the same time their farm animals were sick.
Most people said they had never taken the test.
Dr. Nirav Shah, who led the avian flu response under President Biden, said the CDC was justified in downgrading its emergency response to avian flu earlier this year, but that it should not have changed the work done to monitor the virus and respond in the field.
“They’re counting on the fact that there might be nothing, but that’s a risky game in a situation like a pandemic,” he says.
