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According to a recent statement by Edivilson Brum, the head of the Rio Grande do Sul state’s agriculture department, Brazil is poised to declare commercial flocks free of the avian influenza (bird flu) virus.

The 28-day countdown for reclaiming Brazil's disease-free status began on May 22, 2025.

According to a government article, the 28-day sanitary quarantine ended on June 18, 2025, a period technically referred to as a sanitary vacuum.

Over the period, more than 4,000 vehicles were stopped at sanitary checkpoints set up in the region to control the transportation of animals, animal products, and feed. Surveillance visits to rural properties were conducted within two established zones: one located three kilometers away and the other ten kilometers from the outbreak.

With the end of restrictions and the absence of new outbreaks, Brazil will be able to declare itself to the WHO as a country free of highly pathogenic avian influenza, a crucial step in maintaining international confidence and strengthening Brazilian exports of poultry products.

Although the quarantine has ended, health surveillance remains active in Rio Grande do Sul, which is home to one of the largest poultry farms in Brazil.

All measures adopted in Montenegro followed national protocols and guidelines from the World Organization for Animal Health.

In anticipation of next week’s meeting of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) vaccine advisory panel, a draft agenda was posted today.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) draft agenda, released on June 18, 2025, reflects a shortened two-day meeting that is open to the public to attend digitally and, if selected, to ask questions.

The agenda includes presentations on COVID-19, RSV, Chikungunya, and other vaccines.

It also includes discussions focused on thimerosal as a vaccine ingredient and the measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) vaccine in children. Thimerosal is a mercury-based vaccine preservative for multidose vials.

In July 1999, the Public Health Service agencies, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and vaccine manufacturers agreed that thimerosal should be reduced or eliminated in vaccines as a precautionary measure.

Currently, only a limited number of flu vaccines contain the preservative.

Last week, the CDC’s 17-member ACIP was reduced to eight new members.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) today announced that a woman from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, diagnosed at Barnsley Hospital, has died after becoming infected with rabies, following contact with a stray dog during a visit to the Kingdom of Morocco, located in northern Africa.

Currently, the UK's list of rabies-risk areas does not include Monaco.

The UKHSA stated on June 18, 2025, that there is no risk to the broader public about this case, as there is no documented evidence of rabies transmission between people in England. Rabies virus is transmitted through bites and scratches from an infected animal.

Once infected, rabies is nearly always fatal.

Furthermore, rabies does not circulate in either wild or domestic animals in the United Kingdom; however, some species of bats can carry a rabies-like virus, as is the case in the United States. 

Dr. Katherine Russell, Head of Emerging Infections and Zoonoses, at UKHSA, commented in a press release, "If you are bitten, scratched or licked by an animal in a country where rabies is found then you should wash the wound or site of exposure with plenty of soap and water and seek medical advice without delay to get post-exposure treatment to prevent rabies."

When administered promptly after exposure, a course of rabies post-exposure treatment is highly effective in preventing the disease. If such an exposure occurs abroad, the traveller should also consult their doctor on return.

The UKHSA and the U.S. CDC suggest that international travelers speak with a travel vaccine consultant regarding rabies immunization options.

As of 2025, the WHO has pre-qualified human rabies vaccines, including Bavarian Nordic's RabAvert vaccine, which is commercially available in the United States.

GSK plc recently announced that it has licensed its Shigella vaccine candidate, altSonflex1-2-3, to India-based Bharat Biotech International Limited (BBIL).

This agreement paves the way for the ongoing development and potential distribution of the vaccine in low- and middle-income countries where Shigella, an acute human infection of the large intestine, is the leading bacterial cause of diarrhoea, posing a significant health threat to children under five.

The urgent challenge posed by increasing antimicrobial-resistant enteric bacteria, including Shigella, highlights the broader impact a vaccine could have beyond helping to reduce illness and mortality rates.

If approved, a Shigella vaccine has the potential to indirectly reduce antibiotic consumption and help combat the rise of antimicrobial resistance.

As of June 18, 2025, there are no U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)- approved Shigella vaccines.

Thomas Breuer, Chief Global Health Officer at GSK, stated in a press release, "With young children in lower-income countries disproportionately impacted by Shigella, the development of a low-cost vaccine is an important goal for global public health."

Following the technology transfer, GSK will collaborate with BBIL on its design of the Phase 3 trial and support BBIL's efforts to secure external funding. This collaboration builds on GSK's existing relationship with the Indian Biotech company, following a product transfer and license agreement in 2021 for the world's first malaria vaccine, RTS,S (Mosquirix™).

Currently, Valneva SE and LimmaTech Biologics AG are co-developing the Shigella4V2 second-generation tetravalent bioconjugate vaccine candidate against shigelllosis, which is progressing in clinical trials.