Avian influenza virus: detected in the wastewater of 9 Texas cities

Between 4 March and 25 April, the avian influenza virus was detected in the wastewater of nine Texas (USA) cities where H5N1 outbreaks were recorded. The discovery was made by researchers at the Baylor College of Medicine (Houston) who said that the origin could be avian or bovine. Still, it is impossible to exclude other sources of origin such as humans. The increasing presence of H5N1 in domestic animals raises considerable concerns that viral adaptation to immunologically fragile humans may provoke the next influenza pandemic. To warn about the virus, the CDC agency (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) collects data from wastewater and will present the results to citizens. For now, cases of avian H5N1 have been confirmed in dozens of cattle farms and about 300 people have been tested and monitored for symptoms.