María Iglesias-Caballero

Researchers at France's National Institute of Public Health have identified priority pathogens for wastewater surveillance during the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games - to be held from 26 July to 11 August and 28 August to 8 September, respectively. The six pathogens selected, as reported in Eurosurveillance magazine, were poliovirus, influenza A virus, influenza B virus, mpox virus, SARS-CoV-2 and measles virus. Their choice was based on three criteria: analytical feasibility, relevance to the Olympic Games and characteristics of the pathogens, and their value in informing public health policy. In recent weeks, higher than recommended levels of E. coli bacteria have been found in the Seine River, according to the Associated Press.

Although outbreaks of H5N1 avian influenza have reached record numbers in recent years, human infections remain anecdotal. A study published today in Nature identifies a protein responsible for inhibiting the replication of this virus in humans, while 'human' flus are able to evade it. The authors propose that this protein with antiviral activity evolved in primates and consider that resistance or sensitivity to it should be taken into account when assessing the zoonotic potential of avian influenza viruses.

After the World Cup in Qatar, National Microbiology Centre researcher María Iglesias wonders where the social alarm about an alleged outbreak of MERS came from and takes the opportunity to explain some concepts of the virus and its surveillance.

A sarbecovirus distantly related to SARS-CoV-2 and found in horseshoe bats in Russia is able to enter human cells using the ACE2 receptor, according to research published in PLOS Pathogens. 

A new variant of the coronavirus causing COVID-19 has been identified in South Africa, with numerous mutations present in other variants, including Delta. Variant B.1.1.529, as it is now called, appears to be spreading rapidly in South Africa. Attached is the rapid reaction of three Spanish researchers with expertise in genomic surveillance.