Another experimental study of the infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) in several animal species has provided information largely corroborating results of a similar study of SARS-CoV-2 infectivity released last week. Eventually it becomes unnecessary to duplicate studies like this, but at the start of something new like this, repeated study and
SARS-CoV-2 in ferrets, cats and dogs: A new experimental study
Hot on the heels of the experimental study of SARS-CoV-2 in ferrets that I discussed a couple days ago is another new study, available in pre-print, that looked at susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 in a slightly wider range of animals, including ferrets, cats, dogs, pigs and poultry (Shi et al. 2020). Bear in
COVID-19 and potential animal hosts
Viruses need to attach to cells to infect them, and they do this by binding to specific receptors on the cell. If a virus can’t attach, it can’t infect. Some receptors are very specific to an individual animal species, while some are more general. These differences in receptor binding explain why some viruses only infect
Zinc, pigs and the meaning of antimicrobial stewardship
Bacteria are smarter than we give them credit for.
Or maybe we’re not a bright as we think we are.
Antimicrobial stewardship is sometimes (wrongly) assumed to simply be the practice of “using fewer antimicrobials,” but it’s more complex than that, because the issue is complex. At face value, overall reduction in antimicrobial use is
New pig disease arrives in Ontario
It was only a matter of time, so it’s not particularly surprising, but a potentially devastating pig disease has made its way into Ontario. It’s not a concern to people or other animals, but it’s worth mentioning here anyway (both to say it’s not a public health or non-pig health concern, and since it’s a
Brucellosis from Aussie pigs
Australian Elmer Fudds beware… there are concerns that feral pig hunting is a risk factor for brucellosis in New South Wales. Brucellosis is a rare disease, but a report like this raises concern because it can be nasty, and it can also be hard to diagnose (or it’s not considered right away).
We
More on MRSA and meat
While it shouldn’t come as a surprise considering other studies, a recent study in PLoS One (O’Brien et al 2012) has caused a bit of a stir in the US. This study, headed up by Dr. Tara Smith’s research group in Iowa, looked for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in retail pork. They bought
Tularemia alert in Texas
When it comes to handling microorganisms, there are 4 biosafety levels.
- Biosafety level 1 (BSL-1) organisms are harmless.
- BSL-2 organisms include most of the commonly encountered bugs, including things like E. coli, Salmonella and Staphylococcus aureus. They can cause serious disease but infections are often treatable and they can be handled safely with
Livestock-associated MRSA in dogs
A study we just published in the journal Veterinary Record (Floras et al 2010) described an MRSA outbreak in a dog breeding kennel. That’s a little unusual in itself, but considering how MRSA is spreading amongst the dog population, it’s not really astounding. What was unique about this outbreak was the strain of
G-force and zoonotic disease
It seems like whenever a hit TV show or movie features an animal, there’s concern about the "101 Dalmatians effect," whereby there’s a mad rush to get the animal for a pet. When 101 Dalmatians was a hit movie, there was a huge spike in sales of this rather unusual breed – a