The World Health Organization has confirmed the presence of H5N1 bird flu virus in the raw milk of animals. This has created a stir in many countries of the world. Scientists have said that this virus is spreading from birds to cows and from cows to cows and from cows to humans.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed the presence of H5N1 bird flu virus strain in raw milk. This has created an uproar in the world. According to WHO, H5N1 strain has been found in large quantities in the raw milk of infected animals. How long this virus can survive in milk is unknown. Scientists are now investigating it. Avian influenza A(H5N1) first emerged in 1996, but the number of infected mammals has increased since 2020, AFP reports.
Due to this stress, lakhs of chickens have died. Apart from wild birds, land and marine mammals have also been infected. Cows and goats joined the list of animals vulnerable to bird flu last month. This was a surprising development for experts, because until now cows and goats were not considered susceptible to this type of influenza. US officials said earlier this month that a man working on a dairy farm in Texas was recovering from bird flu after coming in contact with cattle.
cow infected person
“This is the first case of a human being infected with avian influenza by a cow in Texas,” said Wenqing Zhang, head of the global influenza program at the World Health Organization. Bird-to-cow, cow-to-cow, and cow-to-bird transmission have also been recorded during these current outbreaks, which suggests that the virus has found other routes of transmission than we previously thought, he said. This was only the second case of a human testing positive for bird flu in the United States and it came after the virus sickened flocks that had apparently been in contact with wild birds. “We are now seeing increasing numbers of cow herds affected in many U.S. states, which represents another step in the spread of the virus into mammals,” Zhang said.
Virus also found in the milk of infected animals
According to WHO, the virus has also been found in the milk of infected animals.” Zhang said that “the amount of virus in raw milk is very high”, but experts are still investigating how long the virus can survive in milk. The Texas Department of Health has said infection in cattle is not a concern for the commercial milk supply, because pasteurization also kills the virus. “It is important for people to ensure safe food practices, including consuming only pasteurized milk and milk products,” Zhang said.
Recent cases of infection
WHO said that from 2003 to April 1 this year, 463 people have died in these cases of infection reported in 889 humans in 23 countries. Due to this the death rate has increased to 52 percent. Zhang said human cases recorded in Europe and the United States have been mild over the past few years since the virus surged. There is no evidence yet that A(H5N1) is spreading among humans. Zhang emphasized that the A(H5N1) viruses identified in cows and the human case in Texas have shown no increased adaptation to mammals. Zhang said that some vaccines are in the pipeline for this.
