Menu

Primary Menu

Skip to content
  • Home
  • About Me
  • glossary
Show Header Sidebar Content

Virology Down Under

Facts, data, info, expert opinion and a reasonable, occasionally grumpy, voice on viruses: what they are, how they tick and the illnesses they may cause.

Latest posts...

don't forget to signup, login, follow and Like them!

Virus on a boat – a belated graphic

Virus on a boat – a belated graphic

Remember when we all died from the pandemic that started on a cruise ship, caused by a passenger acquiring and spreading Orthohantavirus andesense? Me neither. That’s because we didn’t. And Read More ...

Well, the day had to come. “Bird flu” flies into Australia on a feathered wing.

Well, the day had to come. “Bird flu” flies into Australia on a feathered wing.

Lock up the chooks! According to Australia’s national broadcaster, Western Australia (WA) is the site for the first importation to the Australian mainland – via a bird – of an Read More ...

Looks like Flu has reset in Australia

Looks like Flu has reset in Australia

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced a brand-new respiratory virus, SARS-CoV-2. With that introduction, as suspected, lots of things were thrown into disarray. One of those was the circulation of other respiratory Read More ...

A/H5N1 strain of avian influenza A virus (“bird flu”) confirmed in two dead birds in Australia

A/H5N1 strain of avian influenza A virus (“bird flu”) confirmed in two dead birds in Australia

Australia’s Minister for Agriculture has notified Australians that overnight laboratory testing confirmed the presence of A/H5N1 in one sick bird and an H5 virus in another, both found in the same region of Read More ...

Happy Birthday rhinoviruses (RVs) – 60 years old today!

Posted onSeptember 12, 2013July 1, 2025

On September 12, 1953, the Common Cold Unit (CCU) in Salisbury, United Kingdom, reported isolating the agent of the common cold in laboratory cultures. The article was authored by Dr. Read More …

CategoriesRhinovirus

Measles, vaccination and infectious disease communication in Queensland…

Posted onSeptember 5, 2013March 29, 2025

With measles cases prominent in the news of late, there have been a few interesting reports and interviews from Queensland’s local Acting Senior Director for Communicable Diseases, Dr Stephen Lambert. The measles Read More …

CategoriesCommunication, MeaslesTagsQueensland

red bloodcells on white surface

Rhinoviruses (HRVs) in the blood reflect more HRV in the nasopharynx and worse disease…

Posted onAugust 4, 2013July 1, 2025

Of late, we have heard quite a bit about systemic viruses of the nose, throat and lungs, commonly referred to as respiratory viruses.  In this context, we’re referring to the spread Read More …

CategoriesRhinovirus, Viraemia

Human endemic coronaviruses, age and underlying conditions….

Posted onJuly 28, 2013July 1, 2025

Human coronaviruses (HCoVs), that is, the ones that circulate all the time, not the ones that spill over from an animal host to cause havoc and mayhem, come in four Read More …

CategoriesCoronavirus

German HCoV-EMC-local transmission

Posted onMarch 27, 2013January 25, 2026

A 2nd case of the most recently identified HCoV, HCoV-EMC, reported on ProMED, in Germany. The Robert Koch Institute notes that There is still no evidence of continuous human-to-human transmission. [VDU’s first Read More …

CategoriesMERS-CoV, Outbreak, Transmission

Post navigation

Newer posts →

More of VDU

  • Pinterest
  • Google
  • Facebook
  • Mastodon

Recent Posts

  • Virus on a boat – a belated graphic July 13, 2026
  • There are a lot of people sick….again…in winter…. June 28, 2026
  • A/H5N1 strain of avian influenza A virus (“bird flu”) confirmed in two dead birds in Australia June 20, 2026
  • Well, the day had to come. “Bird flu” flies into Australia on a feathered wing. June 19, 2026
  • Looks like Flu has reset in Australia June 5, 2026
  • The ridiculously oversimplified claim that PCR can “detect one single molecule” May 26, 2026
  • Just 0.7% of of universally screened asymptomatic patients produced unrepeatable PCR tests May 2, 2026
  • A little virus that still can: poliovirus and poliomyelitis May 1, 2026
  • Age and COVID-19: What’s with all the young kids? April 14, 2026
  • Asymptomatic, acute and persistent COVID-19 symptom changes over the course of three infections March 5, 2026
  • How are asymptomatic COVID-19 cases tracking? March 2, 2026
  • Another way to look at flu season size February 28, 2026
  • Whooping cough in 2024 was huge in Australia, but is declining in 2025 and 2026 February 19, 2026
  • Pathology lab PCR is not research lab PCR January 27, 2026
  • Is there more flu in Australia and New Zealand than normal for Christmas? Hell Yes! December 27, 2025

All opinions are my own and do not represent medical advice or the views of any institution.

All graphics made by me are free-to-use. Please just cite the particular page, blog and me. A heads-up would be nice, but that can happen later.

Tags

anti-vaccination asymptomatic Australia avian influenza China Democratic Republic of the Congo DRC Ebola virus Ebola virus disease epidemic epidemiology EVD Flu flunami flu season genotype H1N1 H3N2 H7N9 HTLV HTLV-1c influenza influenza virus MERS MERS-CoV molecular epidemiology outbreak PCR pneumonia Queensland reporting respiratory virus rhinovirus RT-PCR SciComm science communication seasonal influenza social media SoMe summer transmission United States of America vaccine Wuhan Zaire ebolavirus

Regular reads…

  • FluTrackers-everything infectious, before it happens
  • Mike Coston’s Avian Flu Diary
  • ProMED mail
  • WHO Disease Outbreak News
  • HealthMap
  • STAT News
  • CIDRAP-timely infectious disease reporting
  • Kai Kupferschmidt
  • Martin Enserink

Recent Posts

  • Virus on a boat – a belated graphic
  • There are a lot of people sick….again…in winter….
  • A/H5N1 strain of avian influenza A virus (“bird flu”) confirmed in two dead birds in Australia
  • Well, the day had to come. “Bird flu” flies into Australia on a feathered wing.
  • Looks like Flu has reset in Australia

All opinions are my own and do not represent medical advice or the views of any institution.

All graphics made by me are free-to-use. Please just cite the particular page, blog and me. A heads-up would be nice too but that can happen later.

Bluesky: @mackayim.bsky.social

Threads: @mackayim.2024

Mastodon: @mackayim2022@mastodon.social

 

Copyright © 2026 Virology Down Under. All Rights Reserved.
• The following link is used to verify that I 'own' the domain
for use with Mastodon
Theme: Clean Box Pro
Scroll Up
  • Home
  • About Me
  • glossary

Virology Down Under

Facts, data, info, expert opinion and a reasonable, occasionally grumpy, voice on viruses: what they are, how they tick and the illnesses they may cause.

Skip to content ↓