We aren’t the only ones keeping up on the latest feline coronavirus news. This page features links to coronavirus related articles from across the web. Have an interesting read you’d like to share? Contact us.
In Search of a Cure for FIP
While FIP antivirals aren’t readily available for use or study in the United States, the research group of Dr. Katrin Hartmann from Munich, Germany, has recently published case report showing that an oral formulation of GS-441524 led to the elimination of feline coronavirus from all tissues tested almost six months after completion of therapy.
Cats Stalk Netflix’s Top 10 List
Cornell’s own Dr. Bruce Kornreich has some amazing feline co-stars in Netflix’s hit documentary, Inside the Mind of a Cat. Its a purrfect way to spend an evening if you haven’t seen it yet!
Netflix: Inside the Mind of a Cat
AAFP Releases New Guidelines For the Diagnosis of FIP
In a special article, published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, a Task Force of experts in feline medicine highlight the “brick by brick” approach clinicians need take to build evidence to support a diagnosis of FIP.
Feline Infectious Periotonitis Diagnosis Guidelines
The Mystery of Long COVID
Science and Nature lay out a trail of clues scientists are following in the hunt to uncover the causes of Long COVID. One theory is that the intestinal tract, among other tissues, serves as a reservoir for the virus in affected people. What causes Long COVID: three leading theories; Coronaviurs ‘ghosts’ found in the gut
Major Coronavirus Variant Found in Pets for the First Time
Science magazine documents work by veterinarians and scientists at a hospital on the outskirts of London where myocarditis cases in cats and dogs jumped nearly 10 fold between December 2020 and February 2021. 11 pets in the study were found to have the B.1.1.7 SARS-CoV-2 UK variant. At this point, researchers cannot confirm that the virus caused heart problems, but the correlation is an interesting one. A case study from Spain in 2020 highlighted a fatal case of hypertropic cardiomyopathy (HCM) in a cat that was infected with SARS-CoV-2. Research is ongoing, but it appears in dogs and cats, pre-existing heart conditions are a risk factor for more severe COVID-19 symptoms: https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/03/major-coronavirus-variant-found-pets-first-time
Cornell Feline Health Center Annual Report
The 2020 FHC Annual report highlights exciting research on feline diseases (including FIP), the COVID-19 response, and the Camuti consult line. It is a treasure trove of resources: https://www.vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/cornell-feline-health-center/about-center/annual-reports
Locally Sourced Science
This local podcast recently interviewed Dr. Alison Stout about what we know about SARS-CoV-2 in cats, and what people can do to protect their cats if they test positive for COVID-19.
https://locallysourcedscience.org/
COVID-19 in Animals Review Part 1: Cats
Scott Weese, DVM, DACVIM, Associate Professor at the University of Guelph, summarizes what is known about SARS-2 in cats on his popular Worms & Germs Blog.
https://www.wormsandgermsblog.com/2020/10/articles/animals/cats/covid-in-animals-review-part-1-cats
A Much-Hyped COVID-19 Drug Is Almost Identical to a Black-Market Cat Cure
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/05/remdesivir-cats/611341/
Legal Treatment for Cat Disease Known as FIP still years away
This VIN News Service publication by Lisa Wogan tackles the complicated history of GS-441524. It also discusses GC376, another antiviral that has shown promise against FIP.
https://news.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=210&Id=9235842&useobjecttypeid=10&fromVINNEWSASPX=1