This Week in Virology

In his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello opine on the recent executive order on the routine childhood vaccination schedule, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda including the fast track trials for 2 vaccine candidates and antivirals, recent Hantavirus infections, use of quarantined “Hantavirus” patients for the governmental propaganda machine, use of ribavirin and other antivirals for Hantavirus associated cardiopulmonary disease, before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, the measles outbreak in Bangladesh, as well as in a daycare center in Texas in 2025, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, FDA approval of a second COVID-19 antiviral drug, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, use of convalescent sera for COVID-19 treatment 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
Childhood Vaccine Hesitancy (NEJM)
One Year In: Public Views of a Changing Public Health Landscape (Harvard School of Public Health)
Rotavirus Vaccine Coverage and Potential Barriers Among US Children Born From 2007 to 2024 (Pediatrics)
Texas reports New World screwworm in 3-week-old calf (CIDRAP)
USDA Confirms First Case of New World Screwworm in a Dog in Lea County, New Mexico, Fourth Case in Texas (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service)
Confirmed Detections of New World Screwworm (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service)
Mexico reports more human New World screwworm infections (CIDRAP)
Frequency and persistence of post-acute symptoms after chikungunya, dengue, Zika and malaria in travellers: a prospective multi-centre study (Journal of Travel Medicine)
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)
Modeled Scenario Projections for the Ebola Disease Outbreak Caused by Bundibugyo Virus, 2026 (CDC: MMWR)
Assessment of Riskto the U.S. Population from the Ebola Disease Outbreak Caused by Bundibugyo Virus, 2026 (CDC: MMWR)
How Ebola Disease Spreads (CDC: Ebola)
Signs and Symptoms of Ebola Disease (CDC: Ebola)
Hantavirusdashboard (Hantavirus.up)
Hantavirus on board with Prof. VincentRacaniello (MicrobeTV)
Some hantavirus-exposed cruise ship passengers return home to finish quarantine (CNN)
Use of tocilizumab for severe hantavirus pulmonary syndrome: a MEURI case series with contextual comparisons (LANCET: Infectious Diseases)
First reported case of Andes hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome treated with a combination of favipiravir, ribavirin, icatibant and baricitinib (Clinical Microbiology and Infection)
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)
Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins)
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)
Anguished Parents, Crying Doctors: Life Amid Utah’s Measles Outbreak (Wired)
Characteristics of Patients Hospitalized with Measles During an Outbreak — West Texas, January–March 2025 (CDC:MMWR)
Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
US respiratory virus activity (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)
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)
Real-world emergence of nirsevimab resistance in breakthrough infections with respiratory syncytial virus-B: a multicentre observational study in France (LANCET: Microbe)
Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)
COVID-19 deaths (CDC)
Respiratory Illnesses Data Channel (CDC: Respiratory Illnesses)
COVID-19 national andregional trends (CDC)
COVID-19 variant tracker (CDC)
SARS-CoV-2 genomes galore (Nextstrain)
Shionogi Announces FDA Approval of XOCOVA® (ensitrelvir), the First and Only Oral Option to Help Prevent COVID-19 Following Exposure (Businesswire)
SARS-CoV-2 viral shedding and vaccination‑modified effects of oral antivirals in older COVID-19 patients: a retrospective cohort study in Hong Kong (International Journal of Infectious Diseases)
SARS-CoV-2 vaccination and attenuation of breakthrough infection severity: A systematic global review and meta-analysis (CID)
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
Metformin on the Presence of COVID-19 Symptoms 6 Months after Infection: The ACTIV-6 Randomized Clinical Trial (CID) Reaching out to US house representative
Letters read on TWiV 1330
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 showing limited transmission of cervid prions to nonhuman primates, and the finding that cone-shaped HIV-1 capsids are transported through intact nuclear pores.
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Alan Dove, and Brianne Barker
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)
Ebola outbreak news (ECDC, WHO)
NSF research grants on hold (Nature)
Transmission of cervid prions to nonhuman primates (Sci Adv)
Cone-shaped HIV-1 capsids transported intact through nuclear pore (Cell)
HIV-1 reproduction video (Janet Iwasa)
Letters read on TWiV 1329
Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
Picks of the Week
Brianne – What We Need to do NEXT Re: OMB Rule
Alan – Metallic Realms, by Lincoln Michel
Vincent – TWiV 1: West Nile Virus
Listener Picks
Mark – How the Library of Congress packed 250 years of U.S. history into a vial the size of a quarter
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 opine on the recent executive order on the routine childhood vaccination schedule, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda including the fast track trials for 2 vaccine candidates and antivirals, recent Hantavirus infections, use of quarantined “Hantavirus” patients for the governmental propaganda machine, use of ribavirin and other antivirals for Hantavirus associated cardiopulmonary disease, before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, the measles outbreak in Bangladesh, as well as in a daycare center in Texas in 2025, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, FDA approval of a second COVID-19 antiviral drug, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, use of convalescent sera for COVID-19 treatment 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
CIDRAP Op-Ed: What’s the likely next move after the executive order on childhood vaccines? (CIDRAP)
Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi)
Epidemic of Ebola Disease caused by Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda determined a public health emergency of international concern (WHO)
WHO ramps up support to the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Ebola outbreak response (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo)
Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola)
Race begins to trial Ebola drugs amid current outbreak (Nature)
Three Ebola vaccine candidates fast-tracked as African outbreak continues (CIDRAP)
CEPI fast-tracks three Bundibugyo ebolavirus vaccine candidates (CEPI)
Obeldesivir (Wikipedia)
Hantavirusdashboard (Hantavirus.up)
Hantavirus on board with Prof. VincentRacaniello (microbeTV)
Scoop: HHS asks confined hantavirus cruise passengers to assist in propaganda (Inside Medicine)
Ribavirin (DrugBank)
First reported case of Andes hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome treated with a combination of favipiravir, ribavirin, icatibant and baricitinib (Clinical Microbiology and Infection)
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)
Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins)
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 (IDSA)
Deaths following vaccination: what does the evidence show (Vaccine)
Bangladesh posts more than 1,300 measles cases, 2 deaths, in 1 day (CIDRAP)
Measles Outbreak in a Child Care Facility — Lubbock, Texas, March–April 2025 (CDC:MMWR)
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: 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)
Shionogi Announces FDA Approval of XOCOVA® (ensitrelvir), the First and Only Oral Option to Help Prevent COVID-19 FollowingExposure (Businesswire)
FDA Approves Oral Antiviral to Prevent COVID-19 After Exposure (MEDPAGE TODAY)
The impact of COVID-19 vaccination on long-term risk of new-onset atrial fibrillation/flutter after COVID-19 infection: A retrospective cohort study (PLoS One)
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)
TWiV 739: COVID-19 convalescent plasma with Arturo Casadevall (microbeTV)
COVID-19 L*OVE: the largest open repository of evidence on this pandemic (Epistemonikos)
Convalescent plasma for people with COVID‐19 (Cochrane Library)
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
Reaching out to US house representative
Letters read on TWiV 1328
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 on human influenza virus transmission that reveals heterogeneous expulsion of infectious virus into air, and how gut bacteriophages dictate inflammation heterogeneity through tuning the phage-bacteria-sphingosine-intestine axis in Crohn’s disease.
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Rich Condit, Brianne Barker, and Jolene Ramsey
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)
NIH ousts infectious-disease leaders (Nature)
Measles deaths in Bangladesh (npr)
Russel Vought is going to destroy American science (Elizabeth Ginexi)
Heterogeneous expulsion of infectious influenza virus into air (Cell)
Gut phages and Crohn’s disease (Cell Host Microbe)
MIST device (Emory)
Letters read on TWiV 1327
Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
Picks of the Week
Brianne – The Perfect Bee Language
Rich – Hubble’s Messier Catalog
Jolene – A different kind of power – Jacinda Ardern
Vincent – Albert Sabin by Karen Torghele
Listener Picks
Anthony – Dr. Dakotah Tyler
Marcus – Apollo
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 comment on incidences of locally transmitted malaria in the US, mpox diagnostics, the latest developments surrounding hantavirus infections, and the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda including vaccine candidates before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, the measles outbreak in Texas in 2025, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, casual association of auto-antibodies and COVID complications 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
CDC Operational Guidance for Investigating Locally Acquired Mosquito-Transmitted Malaria — United States, 2026 (CDC: MMWR)
Performance of five mpox antigen-based rapid diagnostic tests tested on lesion swabs from patients with suspected mpox from the Kinshasa province of DR Congo: a diagnostic accuracy study (LANCET: Infectious Diseases)
Hantavirusdashboard (Hantavirus.up)
Andes Hantavirus Outbreak on a Cruise Ship, 2026 (NEJM)
“Super-Spreaders” and Person-to-Person Transmission of Andes Virus in Argentina (NEJM)
Person-to-Person Transmission of Andes Virus in Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, Argentina, 2014 (CDC: Emerging Infectious Diseases)
Hantavirus on board with Prof. VincentRacaniello (microbeTV)
Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi)
Epidemic of Ebola Disease caused by Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda determined a public health emergency of international concern (WHO)
WHO ramps up support to the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Ebola outbreak response (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo)
WHO chief says fast-moving Ebola epidemic is outpacing response efforts (Reuters)
US CDC seeks staff for Ebola screening as outbreak response expands (Reuters)
Trump Administration to Send Americans Exposed to Ebola to Kenya (NY Times)
Single Immunization With a Monovalent Vesicular Stomatitis Virus–Based Vaccine Protects Nonhuman Primates Against Heterologous Challenge With Bundibugyo ebolavirus (JID)
Vesicular Stomatitis Virus-Based Vaccines Protect Nonhuman Primates against Bundibugyo ebolavirus (PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases)
Vaccine experts debate options to combat outbreak of unusual Ebola strain (Science)
NIAID Establishes Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases (NIAID.NIH)
Inside the Race to Develop a Test for the Rare Andes Hantavirus (Wired)
NIH terminates network aimed at stopping pandemics before they start (Science)
These Researchers Would Be in Africa Fighting Ebola—but Trump Cut Their Funding (Wired)
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)
Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins)
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)
Characteristics of Patients Hospitalized with Measles During an Outbreak — West Texas, January–March 2025 (CDC:MMWR)
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)
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)
US FDA advisers to weigh updating 2026-27 COVID vaccines for XFG variant (Reuters)
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)
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
A causallink between autoantibodies and neurological symptoms in long COVID (Cell)
Reaching out to US house representative
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.