Ivet A. Yordanova
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ivetyorda.bsky.social
Ivet A. Yordanova
@ivetyorda.bsky.social
75 followers 150 following 42 posts
Spacesuit immunologist meddling with nasty viruses ☣️ 🦇

📍 Robert Koch Institute, Germany

|Viral immunology |High-consequence pathogens |Biosafety Level 4 |One Health |Biosecurity

📑 Substack: https://hardlyviral.substack.com/

All opinions are my own
Posts Replies Media Videos
ivetyorda.bsky.social
The new kids on the block: Sager Creek and Salt Gully viruses

Thanks to an exponential growth in #viralsurveillance and #sequencing efforts, scientists are discovering novel (potentially #pathogenic) #viruses on an almost daily basis.

Now on Substack!

hardlyviral.substack.com/p/the-new-ki...
The new kids on the block: Sager Creek and Salt Gully viruses
Thanks to an exponential growth in viral surveillance and sequencing efforts across the globe, scientists are discovering novel (potentially pathogenic) viruses on an almost daily basis.
hardlyviral.substack.com
November 3, 2025 at 11:42 AM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
🦇 Marburg and Sudan viruses elicit divergent interferon responses and cytokine storm signaling in Egyptian rousette bat macrophages

Out now in Frontiers in Immunology. Check it out!

#Marburgvirus #Sudanvirus #filovirus #comparativeimmunology #OneHealth

www.frontiersin.org/journals/imm...
Frontiers | Marburg and Sudan viruses elicit divergent interferon responses and cytokine storm signaling in Egyptian rousette bat macrophages
IntroductionEgyptian rousette bats (ERBs) are the only known natural reservoir of Marburg virus (MARV), etiologic agent of a highly-pathogenic zoonotic viral...
www.frontiersin.org
October 17, 2025 at 7:22 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
Notifiable Viral News: 11 August 2025

Out now on Substack! Subscribe for regular updates on current news and reports of various viral outbreak events around the world.

hardlyviral.substack.com/p/notifiable...

#virus #outbreak #H5N1 #birdflu #measles #mpox #Australia #UK #Cambodia #Mozambique
Notifiable Viral News: 11 August 2025
News and reports of notifiable viral events around the world.
hardlyviral.substack.com
August 11, 2025 at 1:26 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
🦇 Preprint alert! Our latest bat immunology shenanigans are now on bioRxiv. We focused on Egyptian rousette bats (ERBs) and how their macrophages respond to Marburg virus (MARV) and Sudan virus (SUDV).

#Marburgvirus #Sudanvirus #zoonoticpathogen #bats

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Egyptian rousette bat macrophages elicit divergent interferon responses and cytokine storm signalling against Marburg and Sudan viruses
Egyptian rousette bats (ERBs) are the only known natural reservoir of Marburg virus (MARV), etiologic agent of a highly-pathogenic zoonotic viral hemorrhagic fever. In ERBs, evolutionary adaptations a...
www.biorxiv.org
August 7, 2025 at 1:33 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
💻☣️Today's AI forecast: safeguard efficacy against LLM-enabled biorisks.

A new study from the Forecasting Research Institute reports on generalist and expert forecasters' risk estimates of LLM-enabled biosecurity risks.

Now on Substack: ivetyorda.substack.com/p/todays-ai-...

#biosecurity #AI #LLM
Today's AI forecast: safeguard efficacy against LLM-enabled biorisks
A new study from the Forecasting Research Institute reports on generalist and expert forecasters' risk estimates of LLM-enabled biosecurity risks.
ivetyorda.substack.com
August 1, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Reposted by Ivet A. Yordanova
samillingworth.com
🦇 Grooming rabies away

A new study finds vampire bats can lick rabies vaccines off each other, spreading immunity through grooming. 88% of a colony was vaccinated in days.

🔗 www.science.org/content/arti...

#SciComm #Zoonoses 🧪
Vampire bats’ mutual grooming helps spread innovative rabies vaccine
A gel that bats lick off one another’s fur could help prevent rabies outbreaks in cattle, a growing problem in Latin America
www.science.org
July 9, 2025 at 6:02 AM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
The absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. Testing and reporting of #birdflu in the USA have died down, but rest assured the virus hasn't. Ignoring a brewing global-scale disaster is not a viable strategy.

#influenza #pandemicpreparedness #publichealth

open.substack.com/pub/rasmusse...
Where Has All the Bird Flu Gone?
All quiet on the American front for H5N1, but not necessarily the good kind of quiet
open.substack.com
July 6, 2025 at 8:52 AM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
🧬 The #biosecurity nooks and crannies of emerging biotechnologies.

#GenerativeAI in #biotechnology is advancing at logarithmic rates. Experts are increasingly calling for guardrails against the potential malicious use of AI-driven biotech. Now on Substack:

ivetyorda.substack.com/p/the-biosec...
The biosecurity nooks and crannies of emerging biotechnologies
Generative AI in biotechnology is advancing at logarithmic rates. Experts are increasingly calling for the integration of guardrails against the potential malicious use of AI-driven biotech.
ivetyorda.substack.com
June 23, 2025 at 1:02 PM
Reposted by Ivet A. Yordanova
ukhsa.bsky.social
🆕 Today, UKHSA and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) have confirmed the first detection of West Nile virus in mosquitoes collected in the UK.
There is currently no evidence of wider circulation in birds or mosquitoes, and the risk to the public remains very low.
📰🔗 www.gov.uk/government/n...
An announcement poster stating 'We have detected West Nile virus in mosquitoes collected in the UK for the first time', with a mosquito graphic.
May 21, 2025 at 12:33 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
Aum Shinrikyo was a wild doomsday cult, whose leader "predicted and decided to make armageddon happen". They carried out notorious sarin and VX attacks in Tokyo in the 1990s and (allegedly...) tried to develop Ebola and anthrax-based bioweapons ☣️☢️

www.youtube.com/watch?v=v60p...
AUM: The Cult at the End of the World | Official Trailer
YouTube video by Greenwich Entertainment
www.youtube.com
May 13, 2025 at 12:57 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
🦇 For #Berlin folks: Denn's Biomarkt are running a fundraising project this summer to build more bat houses in the area! You can donate your Pfand receipts in boxes at checkout counters! 🦇

www.biomarkt.de/fledermaeuse...
May 2, 2025 at 8:45 AM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
Day 2 of #ECV2025 🔬🧬🧫

A mesmerizing combination of gorgeous views, pristine weather, and superb virology and immunology!
April 28, 2025 at 3:35 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
🦇 The lesser known hemorrhagic cousin: Ravn virus.

Only two orthomarburgviruses are known to date. How they differ from each other in humans, primates and bats remains largely elusive. Now on Substack!

#Marburgvirus #Ravnvirus #hemorrhagicfever #bats

ivetyorda.substack.com/p/the-lesser...
The lesser known hemorrhagic cousin: Ravn virus
Only two orthomarburgviruses are known to date. How they differ from each other in humans, primates and bats remains largely elusive.
ivetyorda.substack.com
April 24, 2025 at 6:01 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
"Fever of unknown etiology": the UFOs among infectious diseases

Clusters of infectious diseases of unknown etiology often times remain undiagnosed and occasionally spark a frenzy around the next #DiseaseX despite their usually (later proven) known origins.

ivetyorda.substack.com/p/fever-of-u...
"Fever of unknown etiology": the UFOs among infectious diseases
Clusters of infectious diseases of unknown etiology often times remain undiagnosed and occasionally spark a frenzy around the next "Disease X" despite their usually (later proven) known origins.
ivetyorda.substack.com
April 1, 2025 at 10:01 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
Viral interplay in bats and the potential consequences of co-infections

Egyptian rousette bats are natural reservoirs of Marburg virus, causative agent of viral hemorrhagic fever. How is MARV influenced by co-infections with other pathogens carried by these bats?

open.substack.com/pub/ivetyord...
Viral interplay in bats and the potential consequences of co-infections
Egyptian rousette bats are natural reservoirs of Marburg virus, causative agent of viral hemorrhagic fever. How is Marburg virus influenced by co-infections with other pathogens carried by these bats?
open.substack.com
March 19, 2025 at 1:21 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
Influenza - when age groups matter

Various influenza viruses have circulated in the past few centuries. As they spread, distinct virus-specific antibody repertoires are formed in individuals born at different times. So what?

ivetyorda.substack.com/p/influenza-...

#H5N1 #influenza #1918pandemic
Influenza - when age groups matter
Various influenza viruses have circulated in the past few centuries. As they spread, distinct virus-specific antibody repertoires are formed in individuals born at different times. So what?
ivetyorda.substack.com
March 15, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Reposted by Ivet A. Yordanova
onehealthinstitute.bsky.social
OHI's Dr. Ralph Vanstreels joined a recent expedition to collect data on the spread of #H5N1 avian influenza virus in #Antarctica. 188 out of 846 swabs collected from birds and mammals along the Antarctic Peninsula's west coast and the Weddell Sea tested positive.
www.science.org/content/arti...
Deadly avian flu strain is spreading rapidly in Antarctica
Expedition finds H5N1 in 13 bird and seal species on the Antarctic Peninsula
www.science.org
March 14, 2025 at 7:57 PM
Reposted by Ivet A. Yordanova
rki.de
🎓 Apply now: PhD program 2025 – 2028 at the Center for Artificial Intelligence in Public Health Research (ZKI-PH) at the #RKI!

🔹 Start: October 2025
🔹 6 projects with #AI focus
📆 Application deadline: 30. April

🔗 www.rki.de/zki-phd-en

More insights in our #YouTube video:
📹 youtu.be/8pp_FH_2yH4
A promotional image for the PhD program 2025–2028 in Artificial Intelligence and Public Health. The image features six young researchers in individual portrait shots, each smiling or engaged in conversation, with a modern office background featuring plants. In the bottom left corner, a blue box contains the text: "Programme 2025–2028 – Get a PhD in AI and Public Health." Above it, an orange speech bubble reads: "Apply now!"
March 7, 2025 at 11:02 AM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
The most recent identification of a Lassa virus case in the UK (travel-associated) is yet another timely reminder that "exotic" diseases travel fast, far and often undetected.

🐀 #Lassafever occurs primarily following contact with infected African rat faeces/urine and doesn't spread easily between 🙍
ukhsa.bsky.social UK Health Security Agency @ukhsa.bsky.social · Mar 10
You might have seen that we’re contact tracing after an individual travelled to England while unwell with #LassaFever. 🔍📰
Want to know the facts on the illness? Our latest blog post covers everything you need to know. 📖👇
ukhsa.blog.gov.uk/2025/03/07/w...
What are the symptoms of Lassa fever and how is it spread?
This blog post summarises the key points about Lassa fever and what UKHSA does when a case of an infectious disease such as Lassa fever is identified in the UK.
ukhsa.blog.gov.uk
March 10, 2025 at 11:42 AM
Reposted by Ivet A. Yordanova
gesvirologie.bsky.social
Tomorrow (Tuesday, 11th March), 2 pm in our "How to…" seminar series: Reverse Genetics in Virology by Dr. Bettina Trüeb and Dr. Kemal Mehinagic from the Volker Thiel lab, University Bern.
Join us @ achieve.g-f-v.org/registration...
(BM)
March 10, 2025 at 10:26 AM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
3 key questions about H5N1 bird flu and the latest research studies addressing them.

ivetyorda.substack.com/p/3-key-ques...

#H5N1 #birdflu #tranmission #dairycattle #pigs #outbreak #pandemic #spillover
3 key questions about H5N1 bird flu and the latest research studies addressing them
Highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been making the rounds in birds and numerous mammals, including humans. As the outbreak develops, so does the research. Here are some of the latest studies.
ivetyorda.substack.com
March 9, 2025 at 6:05 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
What *are* viruses up to across Europe on a day-to-day? If you're interested in keeping up-to-date, please subscribe to my new Substack newsletter for regular updates on reports, case studies, policy briefs etc. on all things viral zoonoses/biosecurity/science policy!

substack.com/@ivetyorda
March 8, 2025 at 4:57 PM
Reposted by Ivet A. Yordanova
duckswabber.bsky.social
Great walk through of all the knowns and unknowns of the current HPAI outbreak in US dairy cattle with a focus on both the cattle, but also human pandemic risk.
👉 journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
March 6, 2025 at 10:17 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
🧬 Viral Wordle Week #6:

prescottlab.wordpress.com/viralwordle/
March 5, 2025 at 12:19 PM
ivetyorda.bsky.social
Bats are indeed awesome and incredibly important within their environment! They (sadly) also pose public health risks of zoonotic disease spillover, as natural reservoirs of high consequence viral pathogens, incl. various filoviruses, henipaviruses, rhabdoviruses and paramyxoviruses 🧫🧪🔬
batconservation.bsky.social Bat Conservation Trust @batconservation.bsky.social · Mar 2
🦇 Why bats matter? Bats play an important role in many habitats around the world. All British bat species help control insects by feeding on them. In the UK, some are ‘indicator species’, because changes to these bat populations can indicate changes in the environment buff.ly/3Xnm3V3...
March 4, 2025 at 5:19 PM