This Week in Virology

In his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello are distressed by Erica Schwartz’ confirmation as CDC director, the GAO proposed pandemic preparedness plans, the national cyclospora outbreak and resulting two deaths, new screwworm and the scale of the Ebola outbreak in the Congo, and clear results from some of President Trump’s policies dismantling public health activites including water safety, before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics on RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, FDA approval of Moderna’s mRNA vaccine for seasonal flu, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, how SARS-CoV-2 infections may reactivate latent viral infections, particularly Aniello virus, and contacting your federal government representative to stop the assault on science and biomedical research.
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Links for this episode
Senate confirms Erica Schwartz as CDC director (CIDRAP)
PUBLIC HEALTH PREPAREDNESS: Experts Identified Actions to Improve Surveillance for Emerging Disease Threats (Government Accountability Office)
Association Between First MMR Vaccination Before Age 2 Years and Childhood Autism in a U.S. EHR Cohort of 2.5 Million Children (The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal)
F.D.A. Approves Moderna’s mRNA Flu Vaccine (NY Times)
Efficacy and Safety of an mRNA Seasonal Influenza Vaccine in Adults (NEJM)
Two Deaths Linked to Cyclosporiasis in Michigan (NY Times)
CDC expands largest known cyclosporiasis outbreak to 15 states (Washington Post)
Surveillance of Cyclosporiasis (CDC: Cyclosporiasis)
Infectious DiseaseOutbreaks (Michigan: Health & Human Services)
Cyclosporiasis Cases in North Carolina (North Carolina: Division of Public Health)
Cyclospora Infection (Cyclosporiasis) (NYC Health)
Missouri Communicable Disease Report (2026) (Missouri Health)
Irrigation & Water Use (USDA: Economic Research Service)
A Guide to OSHA’s Field Sanitation Standard (OSHA)
Turm purge at FDA and USDA triggers food safety ‘brain drain’ (FOODNavigator)
Foodborne Illness Surveillance Systems (CDC)
About Campylobacter infection (CDC: Campylobacter infection (Campylobacteriosis))
About Cyclosporiasis (CDC: Cyclosporiasis)
About Listeria Infection (CDC: Listeria Infection (Listeriosis))
About Salmonella Infection (CDC: Salmonella Infection (Salmonellosis))
About Escherichia coli Infection (CDC: E.Coli Infection (Escherichia coli))
About Shigella Infection (CDC: Shigella-Shigellosis)
About Vibrio Infection (CDC: Vibrio Infection (Vibriosis))
About Yersinia Infection (CDC: Yersinia Infection (Yersiniosis))
CDC Reveals Cause of Malaria’s Return to US After 20 Years(Newsweek)
Trump Dismantles USAID: Experts Say Move Will Help America’s Rivals and Harm Millions (Newsweek)
What we truly know about the huge US Cyclospora outbreak—and what we don’t (CIDRAP)
It’s The Water, Not Produce, Likely Driving Cyclospora Outbreaks (Forbes)
Dashboard SCREWWORM.Gov (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service)
CDC Activates Emergency Operations Center for New World Screwworm Response (CDC Newroom)
Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi)
EBOLA: The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026(WHO)
Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo)
Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola)
EXCLUSIVE: Congo’s Ebola epidemic started at least 4 months before it was detected (Science)
Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan)
Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola)
Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard (South Carolina Department of Public Health)
Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services)
Utah Measles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services)
Measles (VDH: Virginia Department of Health)
Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins)
HAP’s Latest News Pa. Launches New Measles Dashboard (Hospital + HealthSystem Association of Pennsylvania)
Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg)
Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada)
Measles (WHO)
Get the FACTS about measles (NY State Department of Health)
Measles (CDC Measles (Rubeola))
Measles vaccine (CDC Measles (Rubeola))
Presumptive evidence of measles immunity (CDC)
Contraindications and precautions to measles vaccination (CDC)
Adverse events associated with childhood vaccines: evidence bearing on causality (NLM)
Measles Vaccination: Know the Facts (ISDA: Infectious Diseases Society of America)
Deaths following vaccination: what does the evidence show (Vaccine)
Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
US respiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)
Respiratory virus activity levels (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)
Flu vaccine recommendations: Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee March 12, 2026 Meeting Announcement (FDA)
WHO updates all 3 viral strains to be included in fall flu shots (CIDRAP)
FDA vaccine advisers recommend adding subclade K to fall shots (CIDRAP)
Moderna’s mRNA flu shot mFlusiva snags FDA nod after refusal-to-file imbroglio (Fierece Pharma)
Weekly surveillance report: clift notes (CDC FluView)
OPTION 2: XOFLUZA $50 Cash Pay Option (xofluza)
RSV: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
Respiratory Diseases (Yale School of Public Health)
US respiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)
RSV-Network (CDC Respiratory Syncytial virus Infection)
Vaccines for Adults (CDC: Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV))
Economic Analysis of Protein Subunit and mRNA RSV Vaccination in Adults aged 50-59 Years (CDC: ACIP)
Respiratory Diseases (Yale School of Public Health)
Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
COVID-19 deaths (CDC)
Respiratory Illnesses Data Channel (CDC: Respiratory Illnesses)
COVID-19 national and regional trends (CDC)
COVID-19 variant tracker (CDC)
SARS-CoV-2 genomes galore (Nextstrain)
Household Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in Washington and Oregon, United States, 2022-2024 (Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society)
Where to get pemgarda (Pemgarda)
EUA for the pre-exposure prophylaxis of COVID-19 (INVIYD)
Infusion center (Prime Fusions)
CDC Quarantine guidelines (CDC)
NIH COVID-19 treatment guidelines (NIH)
Drug interaction checker (University of Liverpool)
Help your eligible patients access PAXLOVID with the PAXCESS Patient Support Program (Pfizer Pro)
Understanding Coverage Options (PAXCESS)
Infectious Disease Society guidelines for treatment and management (ID Society)
Molnupiravir safety and efficacy (JMV)
Convalescent plasma recommendation for immunocompromised (ID Society)
What to do when sick with a respiratory virus (CDC)
Managing healthcare staffing shortages (CDC)
Anticoagulation guidelines (hematology.org)
Daniel Griffin’s evidence based medical practices for long COVID (OFID)
Long COVID hotline (Columbia : Columbia University Irving Medical Center)
The answers: Long COVID
Virus reactivation in acute and long COVID-19 (Nature)
Reaching out to US house representative
Letters read on TWiV 1346
Dr. Griffin’s COVID treatment summary (pdf)
Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees
Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv
Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.

TWiV travels to Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, where he speaks with Angela Bosco-Lauth, Rebekah Kading, and Mark Stenglein about their careers and their virology research.
Host: Vincent Racaniello
Guests: Angela Bosco-Lauth, Rebekah Kading, and Mark Stenglein
Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email
Become a patron of TWiV!
Links for this episode
Support science education at MicrobeTV
Susceptibility of wild and domestic songbirds to Usutu virus (PLoS NTD)
Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus 2 Infection in Snowshoe Hares (J Wildl Dis)
SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant transmission among red fox and striped skunk (Virology)
Susceptibilities and viral shedding of peridomestic wildlife infected with clade 2.3.4.4b H5N1 (Virology)
Socioeconomic benefits associated with bats (J Ethnobiol Ethnomed)
Intrinsic factors driving mosquito vector competence (Front Cell Inf Micro)
Modernizing the Toolkit for Arthropod Bloodmeal Identification (Insects)
Can Bats Serve as Reservoirs for Arboviruses? (Viruses)
The Case for Studying New Viruses of New Hosts (Ann Rev Virol)
Rapid evolution of SARS-CoV-2 in domestic cats (Virus Evol)
Safety study of Rift Valley Fever human vaccine candidate in mosquitoes (Transbound Emerg Dis)
Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees
Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv
Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.

In his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello discuss the numerous attempts by states to roll back vaccine laws, the recent surge of Dengue virus cases in Sri Lanka, the national cyclospora outbreak, new screwworm and Legionnaires cases, launching of the CHaT-Ox Ebola vaccine trail, scale of the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and if cross-reactive Ebola antibodies are effective, before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak including the new Pennsylvania dashboard, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, how long COVID and ME/CFS differ and contacting your federal government representative to stop the assault on science and biomedical research.
 
Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email
Become a patron of TWiV!
Links for this episode
Dozens of States Tried to Roll Back Vaccine Laws. Here’s How They Fared. (NY Times)
Dengue cases in Sri Lanka surge past 80,000 (Newswire)
After withdrawing false-positive test, FDA says Taylor Farms lettuce still a focus of Cyclospora investigation (CIDRAP)
A difficult-to-trace parasite, messaging missteps contribute to summer of overwhelming Cyclospora outbreaks (CIDRAP)
Surveillanceof Cyclosporiasis (CDC: Cyclosporiasis)
Infectious DiseaseOutbreaks (Michigan: Health & Human Services)
Cyclosporiasis Cases in North Carolina (North Carolina: Division of Public Health)
Cyclospora Infection (Cyclosporiasis) (NYC Health)
Legionnaires’ Disease (NYC Health)
MAP UPDATE: 50 buildings in Manhattan outbreak zone test positive for live bacteria (NBC: News)
Dashboard SCREWWORM.Gov (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service)
CDC Activates Emergency Operations Center for New World Screwworm Response (CDC Newroom)
Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi)
EBOLA:The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026 (WHO)
Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo)
Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola)
First volunteer vaccinated in the world’s first Bundibugyo ebolavirus vaccine trial (University of Oxford)
Cross-Reactive Bundibugyo Antibody Responses after Receipt of Licensed Ebola Vaccines (NEJM)
Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan)
Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola)
Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard (South Carolina Department of Public Health)
Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services)
UtahMeasles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services)
Measles (VDH: Virginia Department of Health)
Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins)
HAP’s Latest News Pa. Launches New Measles Dashboard (Hospital + HealthSystem Association of Pennsylvania)
Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg)
Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada)
Measles (WHO)
Get the FACTS about measles (NY State Department of Health)
Measles (CDC Measles (Rubeola))
Measles vaccine (CDC Measles (Rubeola))
Presumptive evidence of measles immunity (CDC)
Contraindications and precautions to measles vaccination (CDC)
Adverse events associated with childhood vaccines: evidence bearing on causality (NLM)
Measles Vaccination: Know the Facts (ISDA: Infectious Diseases Society of America)
Deaths following vaccination: what does the evidence show (Vaccine)
Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
USrespiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)
Respiratory virus activity levels (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)
Flu vaccine recommendations: Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee March 12, 2026 Meeting Announcement (FDA)
WHO updates all 3 viral strains to be included in fall flu shots (CIDRAP)
FDA vaccine advisers recommend adding subclade K to fall shots (CIDRAP)
Weekly surveillance report: cliff notes (CDC FluView)
OPTION 2: XOFLUZA $50 Cash Pay Option (xofluza)
RSV: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
Respiratory Diseases (Yale School of Public Health)
USrespiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)
RSV-Network (CDC Respiratory Syncytial virus Infection)
Vaccines for Adults (CDC: Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV))
Economic Analysis of Protein Subunit and mRNA RSV Vaccination in Adults aged 50-59 Years (CDC: ACIP)
Respiratory Diseases (Yale School of Public Health)
Impact of Nirsevimab in Its Second Season on Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Non-RSV Admissions in Children Under 5 (Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal)
Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
COVID-19 deaths (CDC)
Respiratory Illnesses Data Channel (CDC: Respiratory Illnesses)
COVID-19 national and regional trends (CDC)
COVID-19 variant tracker (CDC)
SARS-CoV-2 genomes galore (Nextstrain)
Where to get pemgarda (Pemgarda)
EUAfor the pre-exposure prophylaxis of COVID-19 (INVIYD)
Infusion center (Prime Fusions)
CDC Quarantine guidelines (CDC)
NIH COVID-19 treatment guidelines (NIH)
Drug interaction checker (University of Liverpool)
Help your eligible patients access PAXLOVID with the PAXCESS Patient Support Program (Pfizer Pro)
Understanding Coverage Options (PAXCESS)
Remdesivir and All-Cause Graft Loss Among Kidney Transplant Recipients With Symptomatic COVID-19 (JAMA: Network Open)
Infectious Disease Society guidelines for treatment and management (ID Society)
Molnupiravir safety and efficacy (JMV)
Convalescent plasma recommendation for immunocompromised (ID Society)
What to do when sick with a respiratory virus (CDC)
Managing healthcare staffing shortages (CDC)
Anticoagulationguidelines (hematology.org)
Daniel Griffin’s evidence based medical practices for long COVID (OFID)
Long COVID hotline (Columbia : Columbia University Irving Medical Center)
Skeletal muscle properties in long COVID and ME/CFS differ from those induced by bed rest (Nature Communications)
Loss of vesicular monoamine transporter 2 in striatum of long COVID and relationship to neuropsychiatric symptoms (eBioMedicine)
The answers: Long COVID
Reaching out to US house representative
Letters read on TWiV 1344
Dr. Griffin’s COVID treatment summary (pdf)
Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees
Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv
Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.

TWiV explains research which shows that Per os infectivity factors are essential for bracovirus infection and wasp parasitism, and that periodic shifts in viral load increase risk of Hendra virus spillover from Pteropus bats.
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Rich Condit, and Kathy Spindler
Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email
Become a patron of TWiV!
Links for this episode
Support science education at MicrobeTV
Positions in Rosenfeld Lab (email)
Susumu Tonegawa Dies (Wikipedia)
Measles Cases Hit New Record in U.S., as Vaccination Rates Wane (NYTimes)
Polydnaviruses on  on TWiVs 372 and 443
Per os infectivity factors essential for bracovirus infection and wasp parasitism (PNAS)
Periodic shifts in viral load increase risk of Hendra virus spillover from Pteropus bats (Sci Adv)
Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
Picks of the Week
Kathy – A) Sign up for ScienceAdviser daily newsletter, free B) Goats DO get brain damage from head butting (Original bioRxiv preprint)
Rich – This Star Just Ate a Planet, and It’s Not Done Yet
Alan – Schisto and Ladders educational board game story, and the original publication on it.
Vincent – How female dolphins know which males to avoid (Original article)
Listener Pick
David – What’s Under Your Feet in New York City?
Ken – The usefulness of useless knowledge
Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees
Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv
Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.

In his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello explore the source/not source of the national cyclospora outbreak, trust in the FDA to correctly identify the source, new screwworm, Legionnaires and cyclosporasis cases, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and development of a novel vaccine and antiviral before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak including the new Pennsylvania dashboard, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, difference between high and standard dose influenza vaccines, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, and contacting your federal government representative to stop the assault on science and biomedical research.
Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email
Become a patron of TWiV!
Links for this episode
How helpful is not up to date? CDC: cyclosporiasis
Taylor Farms pulls Mexican Lettuce on Cyclospora Cases (Bloomberg)
FDA retracts positive cyclospora test on Taylor Farms lettuce (NPR: WHYY)
False-positive lab sample DOES NOT change the basis for FDA’s ongoing outbreak investigation (X)
FDA retracts test result but still links Taylor Farms lettuce to cyclosporiasis (Washington Post)
Infectious Disease Outbreaks (Michigan: Health & Human Services)
Cyclospora Infection (Cyclosporiasis) (NYC Health)
Legionnaires’ Disease (NYC Health)
Chapter 8: Cooling Towers (NYC Health)
You can verify ifa person is licensed on the New York State Office of the Professions website: (NSPE-NY)
Board for global EHS Credentialing (American Board of Industrial Hygiene)
Water treatment vendor (Association of Water Technologies)
Cooling Towers: Information for Owners and Operators (NYC Health)
Dashboard SCREWWORM.Gov (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service)
CDC Activates Emergency Operations Center for New World Screwworm Response (CDC Newroom)
Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi)
EBOLA:The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026(WHO)
Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo(WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo)
Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola)
Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan)
Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola)
Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard (South Carolina Department of Public Health)
Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services)
UtahMeasles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services)
Measles (VDH: Virginia Department of Health)
Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins)
HAP’s Latest News Pa. Launches New Measles Dashboard (Hospital + HealthSystem Association of Pennsylvania)
Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada)
Measles (WHO)
Get the FACTS about measles (NY State Department of Health)
Measles(CDC Measles (Rubeola))
Measles vaccine (CDC Measles (Rubeola))
Presumptive evidence of measles immunity (CDC)
Contraindications and precautions to measles vaccination (CDC)
Measles (CDC Measles (Rubeola))
Measles(CDC: Measles Rubeola)
Adverse events associated with childhood vaccines: evidence bearing on causality (NLM)
Measles Vaccination: Know the Facts (ISDA: Infectious Diseases Society of America)
Deaths following vaccination: what does the evidence show (Vaccine)
Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
USrespiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)
Respiratory virus activity levels (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)
Flu vaccine recommendations: Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee March 12, 2026 Meeting Announcement (FDA)
WHO updates all 3 viral strains to be included in fall flu shots (CIDRAP)
FDA vaccine advisers recommend adding subclade K to fall shots (CIDRAP)
Influenza vaccine effectiveness against outpatient acute respiratory illness withlaboratory-confirmed influenza, United States, 2024–25 season (CID)
Effect of high-dose versus standard-dose influenza vaccines on hospitalisation outcomes and mortality in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis (LANCET: Healthy Longevity)
Weekly surveillance report: clift notes (CDC FluView)
OPTION 2: XOFLUZA $50 Cash Pay Option (xofluza)
RSV: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
Respiratory Diseases (Yale School of Public Health)
USrespiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)
RSV-Network (CDC Respiratory Syncytial virus Infection)
Vaccines for Adults (CDC: Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV))
Economic Analysis of Protein Subunit and mRNA RSV Vaccination in Adults aged 50-59 Years (CDC: ACIP)
Respiratory Diseases (Yale School of Public Health)
Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
COVID-19 deaths (CDC)
Respiratory Illnesses Data Channel (CDC: Respiratory Illnesses)
COVID-19 national and regional trends (CDC)
COVID-19 variant tracker (CDC)
SARS-CoV-2 genomes galore (Nextstrain)
Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled First-in-Human Trial of a First-in-Class AI-Designed Monoclonal Antibody (GB-0669) Against the Conserved SARS-CoV-2 Spike S2 Stem Helix (JID)
Where to get pemgarda (Pemgarda)
EUAfor the pre-exposure prophylaxis of COVID-19 (INVIYD)
Infusion center (Prime Fusions)
CDC Quarantine guidelines (CDC)
NIH COVID-19 treatment guidelines (NIH)
Drug interaction checker (University of Liverpool)
Help your eligible patients access PAXLOVID with the PAXCESS Patient Support Program (Pfizer Pro)
UnderstandingCoverageOptions (PAXCESS)
Infectious Disease Society guidelines for treatment and management (ID Society)
Molnupiravir safety and efficacy (JMV)
Convalescent plasma recommendation for immunocompromised (ID Society)
What to do when sick with a respiratory virus (CDC)
Managing healthcare staffing shortages (CDC)
Anticoagulationguidelines (hematology.org)
Daniel Griffin’s evidence based medical practices for long COVID (OFID)
Long COVID hotline (Columbia : Columbia University Irving Medical Center)
The answers: Long COVID
Reaching out to US house representative
Letters read on TWiV 1342
Dr. Griffin’s COVID treatment summary (pdf)
Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees
Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv
Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.