BIRDS BECOMING IMMUNE TO WEST NILE
Birds seem to be developing the ability to fight off West Nile virus, reducing the likelihood that humans may contract the disease, scientists say.
Ref. https://www.cbc.ca/story/science/national/2...Nile050704.html
How funny, I commented on this in another thread about the bird flu! I am now wondering if the same will happen with the other. I hadn't realized that the birds adapted to west nile, I thought that we stomped it out before it got really bad amongst birds and humans. It seems that as usual, nature has a way of taking care of its own in the long run. I imagine that this has happened before and we may see it happen again with the likes of the bird flu.
Virus found to adapt through newly discovered path of evolution. Biologists have discovered evidence for a new path of evolution, and with it a deeper understanding of how quickly organisms such as viruses can adapt to their environment. The researchers say their findings, which address longstanding mysteries of how genes acquire new functions and how mutations arise to ease transmission from one host to another, could be applied to investigations of viral diseases such as Zika, Ebola and bird flu. Source 9n.
Viruses could be harder to kill after adapting to warm environments. Enteroviruses and other pathogenic viruses that make their way into surface waters can be inactivated by heat, sunshine and other microbes, thereby reducing their ability to spread disease. But researchers report that global warming could cause viruses to evolve, rendering them less susceptible to these and other disinfectants, such as chlorine. Source 5g.