UK: Delta with K417N – the “mountaineers” variant – PHE coronavirus Delta-AY.1 update

Of the 36 cases of Delta-AY.1 (mountaineers) variant, 27 cases were known to have a vaccination status within the National Immunisation Management System (NIMS).   More...

India: lions at Vandalur Zoo test positive for coronavirus and canine distemper virus

Out of seven samples (four tiger and 3 lions) sent to ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute (ICAR-IVRI) in Izatnagar, Bareilly, in Uttar Pradesh, one lioness tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 and distemper virus, another lioness for SARS-CoV-2, and a lion tested positive for distemper virus,”  said IVRI Joint Director K P Singh said.  More...

China: Zhengli & Daszak – Human-animal interactions and bat coronavirus spillover potential among rural residents in Southern China

Zhengli & Daszak study, September 2019 –  “We conducted a cross-sectional study in the districts of Yunnan, Guangxi, and Guangdong, China…  Serological testing of serum samples from 1,497 local residents revealed that 9 individuals (0.6%) in four study sites were positive for bat coronaviruses, indicating exposure at some point in their life to bat-borne SARSr-CoVs (n=7, Yunnan), HKU10-CoV (n=2, Guangxi), or other coronaviruses that are phylogenetically closely related to these.  More...

India: Shi Zhengli, October 2019 – Filovirus antibodies in humans and bats imply zoonotic spillover

India, October 2019, Zhengli Shi et al: “We present evidence for prior exposure of bat harvesters and two resident fruit bat species to filovirus surface glycoproteins… Our results indicate circulation of several filoviruses in bats and the possibility for filovirus transmission from bats to humans.  More...

India: 1.6% coronavirus vaccine breakthrough rate in study of healthcare workers

India’s largest yet data analysis of the so-called breakthrough infections after inoculation with Covishield [AstraZeneca] has found that 16 in every 1,000 fully vaccinated healthcare workers developed Covid-19 infections, about threefold the incidence observed in a US study after Pfizer or Moderna doses.  More...