Budget 2018-19

  Cases of the omicron variant of the coronavirus popped up in countries on opposite sides of the world and many governments rushed to close their borders Cases of the  omicron   variant  of the coronavirus popped up in countries on opposite sides of the world Sunday and many governments rushed to close their borders even as scientists cautioned that it’s not clear if the new variant is more alarming than other versions of the virus. The variant was identified days ago by researchers in South Africa, and much is still not known about it, including whether it is more contagious, more likely to cause serious illness or more able to evade the protection of vaccines. But many countries rushed to act, reflecting anxiety about anything that could prolong the pandemic that has killed more than 5 million people.

  Researchers have now documented human-to-cat transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, that occurred during the pandemic in the UK Researchers have now documented human-to-cat transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, that occurred during the pandemic in the UK, with the infected cats displaying mild or severe respiratory disease. The research provides fresh evidence that people have transmitted SARS-CoV-2 to cats during the pandemic in the UK. The study, which is published in Veterinary Record, detected the virus last year in cats that developed mild or severe respiratory disease. Investigators used a range of laboratory techniques to show that two domestic cats from households with suspected cases of Covid-19 were infected with SARS-CoV-2. “Given the ability of the coronavirus to infect companion animals, it will be important to monitor for human-to-cat, cat-to-cat and cat-to-human transmission,” said lead author Margaret Hosie of the MRC-Uni...

  Over 4 million coronavirus tests have been conducted in China’s Qingdao city where a local virus cluster was detected over the weekend, officials said Over 4 million coronavirus tests have been conducted in China’s Qingdao city where a local virus cluster was detected over the weekend, officials said. The coronavirus has killed 4,634 people with 85,611 confirmed infections, including 241 active cases, in China. No additional COVID-19 cases have been reported in Qingdao as of Tuesday, following an outbreak of new cases that appeared over the weekend, officials said, adding that over 4.2 million people in the city have been tested out of its 9 million population. On Monday, the city reported 12 new cases, including six asymptomatic ones, though officials maintained that the city was at a low risk of a community-level spread, state-run Global Times reported on Wednesday. Further testing and investigation have shown that the confirmed and asymptomatic cases are closely linked to the ...