WSU receives grant to study bird flu, other diseases in livestock
Washington State University will get $1.5 million to study respiratory diseases in livestock, like bird flu, in the Pacific Northwest and their potential spread to humans.
Since 2021, the newest avian influenza strain –- H5N1 – has infected poultry across the world, but its spread to wild birds, other mammals and now dairy cows worries experts about the potential impacts on humans. So far, three farmworkers have been diagnosed with bird flu associated with a U.S. outbreak in cows, though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the risk to the public remains low.
The university’s Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory will focus their research on small- and medium-sized hosts, like cows, goats and sheep, according to a press release. The project is being funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Washington Department of Health.
“These are species that have the potential to spread diseases to humans,” said Dr. Thomas Waltzek, a virologist at WADDL in the College of Veterinary Medicine who is leading the new project. “It’s all about detecting these diseases quickly, determining if the viruses have pandemic potential and immediately taking corrective actions to hopefully prevent a pandemic.”
https://washingtonstatestandard.com/briefs/wsu-receives-grant-to-study-bird-flu-other-diseases-in-livestock/