h/t Hogvet51
My bolding....
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USDA Discloses Utah Mink Farm H5N1 Infection
Samples collected 3 weeks ago - officially confirmed last Monday, posted today [TABLE="border: 0, cellpadding: 0, cellspacing: 0"]
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Hogvet51[/TD]
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[TD]Aug 21[/TD]
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https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/mammals?page=1 [TABLE="border: 0, cellpadding: 0, cellspacing: 0"]
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Never skip checking the USDA line lists on a Friday! Sometimes a zinger sneaks in there - today was such an occasion, with NSVL list a mink farm infection in Utah under the Mammals Section of HPAI cases. These samples were collected back on August 7th, which means the mink likely started dying around August 1st. NAHLN lab testing likely suggested H5N1 (versus SARS-CoV-2 or another influenza strain the week of August 10th, with rapid shipment to NVSL for confirmatory testing later that week. NVSL then officially confirmed the samples positive for H5N1 August 17th, and published those results to the public today, August 21st. I only lay out the timeline to illustrate the inevitable 3-week delay between initiation of clinical disease and public confirmation of infection. While authorities knew by August 10th or so of the infection, it takes another 11 days to confirm and make it public.
H5N1 in mink is a serious threat, given the susceptibility of the species and the density of animals on a farm, leading to increased opportunities for mutations and/or reassortment with other concurrent (human) influenza infections.
Here are 3 references readers can review dating back to earlier research occurring after an outbreak on a Spanish mink farm in 2023:
Risk assessment of a highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza virus from mink | Nature Communications
‘Incredibly concerning’: Bird flu outbreak at Spanish mink farm triggers pandemic fears | Science | AAAS
Ask the Expert: Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) Viruses | Bird Flu | CDC
I’m confident that a bevy of news releases will follow next week on this case. NVSL and CDC have undoubtedly had tentative sequence information since the day the sample arrived at Ames to evaluate (earlier if Utah sequenced it); I would hope that department of agriculture and public health folks in Utah have also been involved on the farm to assure that zoonotic concerns have been addressed. I know that during the COVID outbreak in 2019, Utah agriculture department, public health, CDC and mink farmers reached some degree of trust in collaborating on SARS-CoV-2 monitoring in a very difficult situation. These are very delicate situations to negotiate and lack of early publicity is not necessarily a nefarious action by regulators.
The big questions in my mind revolve around:
- what is the likely source and are other mink farms in Utah or other states at risk?
- what is the genotype? B3.13 from a nearby dairy outbreak or D1.X from a wildlife incursion or something completely different?
- what concerning SNP’s may have developed or are developing as this virus moves through mink herd(s)? Is the virus moving closer to inter-mammalian aerosol transmission?
- what is the morbidity and mortality rate in mink?
- are nearby wildlife susceptible?
- are nearby domestic species (cats and dogs) affected?
- tracebacks to other contact mink herds (if any)
While the notice lists Salt Lake County as the location, that is likely just a placeholder listing the capital city, with actual county of the farm masked to preserve farm anonymity. Mink farms need protection from locational disclosure for lots of reasons.
I have another unrelated column nearly ready to release, but this is a “big deal” in the H5N1 world that will echo worldwide, so it bumped ahead. Stay tuned.
John[/TD]
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