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02/05/2024 GMT

Crossover infections

BBC World Service - Science In Action, Crossover infections

Bird flu spreads from cows to cats in the US, as chimps are seen eating bat poo in Uganda

As bird flu is found in US farm cats, chimpanzees are observed eating bat dung. Also, we discuss the personal consequences of sharing virological data without permission.

As bird flu is found in US farm cats fed on raw cow’s milk, chimpanzees are observed eating infected bat dung instead of vegetables. There is a constant threat of infections crossing from species to us and also from species to other species, particularly because of what we do. That is, after all, what happened to start the pandemic.

We hear about the ongoing struggles of the Chinese virologist who broke his instructions in China in order to share the first COVID genetic data.

And a strange tale of how tobacco growing might provide bat viruses a path into other species.

Presenter: Roland Pease
Producer: Alex Mansfield
Production co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth

Image: Cows on an American cattle farm (Credit: Adam Davis/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

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