"Dogs Can Be A Potential Risk For Future Influenza Pandemic"
Dogs are a potential reservoir for a future influenza pandemic, according to a study published in the journal mBio. The study demonstrated that influenza virus can jump from pigs into canines and that influenza is becoming increasingly diverse in canines. "The majority of pandemics have been associated with pigs as an intermediate host between avian viruses and human hosts. In this study, we identified influenza viruses jumping from pigs into dogs," said study investigator, Adolfo Garcia-Sastre, PhD, director of the Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute and professor of medicine, microbiology and infectious diseases at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The researchers say it is time to think about ways to restrict the circulation of the influenza virus in dogs. The United States is free of avian influenza because every time avian influenza has been detected in poultry in this country, the chickens or turkeys are culled and eliminated from circulation," said Dr. García-Sastre. "There are attempts to restrict influenza virus in pigs through vaccination and one could consider vaccination for dogs."
- Adolfo Garcia-Sastre, PhD, Director, Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Professor, Microbiology, Medicine, Infectious Diseases, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
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