Tom Peacock
@peacockflu.bsky.social
Virologist - Influenza and Coronaviruses
Great to see this finally published! We describe channels at the poxvirus core wall involved in nucleic acid release. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
In situ structure of the poxvirus portal complex - Nature
Cryo-electron tomography uncovers the structure of a conserved hexameric ‘portal complex’ that spans the core wall in vaccinia virus, and shows how it is associated with viral functions such as a...
nature.com
In new study led by @bdadonaite.bsky.social, we show many influenza HAs (H5, H7, H9, H1, H2, H3) can use avian or human MHC-II to enter cells. We then use novel combo of deep mutational scanning & cryoEM to define how H5 HA binds to avian MHC-II. Preprint: doi.org/10.64898/202...
🚨New Pre-Print!🚨 Want to search for variation in influenza A virus sequences, but find the amount of data overwhelming? Wondering if new avian flu strains have signs of mammalian adaptation? The #Flu-MutationExplorer, a new online tool, can help (1/n) www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Until Friday, Australia was the only continent free from HPAI H5N1. Sadly, this is not the case - a 2344b confirmation in a Brown Skua, and a suspected case in a Northern Giant Petrel which turned up in WA. 👉 www.abc.net.au/news/2026-06... (1/x)
These 2 new #H5N1 #birdflu infected herds in Texas & Utah have made it to #USDA 's official count. total now 1,109 herds in 19 states. www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-po...
Helen Branswell 🇨🇦@helenbranswell.bsky.social · 2mo agoThere are media reports of 2 new #H5N1 #birdflu outbreaks in dairy cows, in Texas and Utah. They haven't yet been added to #USDA 's dashboard. If confirmed by USDA, there will have been 1,109 herds infected in 19 states. www.telemundoutah.com/noticias/loc... and www.kbtx.com/2026/06/04/h...
There’s a LOT going on as researchers and public health experts race to respond to the Ebola Bundibugyo outbreak in DRC and Uganda before it grows bigger. Some really important questions still open, but also a few answers coming into view🧪 My overview in @science.org is here (and thread coming):
Scientists play catch-up to startling Ebola outbreak
Testing, sequencing, and clinical trial efforts spring to life as Bundibugyo virus spreads
science.org
Initial genomic characterization of the Bundibugyo virus outbreak in Eastern DRC with cases in Uganda. Join work between INRB in DRC and CPHL in Uganda plus many partners. virological.org/t/initial-ge...
With the news that a French woman and someone from the US, both of whom had been on board the MV Hondius, have tested positive for #hantavirus, the Andes virus outbreak is now up to 10 cases: That's eight confirmed and two probable. Given the long incubation period, there may still be more cases.
First genome sequence from Andes hantavirus strain from ongoing ship outbreak posted on Virological: virological.org/t/complete-s... courtesy Swiss National Reference Centre for Emerging Viral Infections, Geneva University Hospitals, University of Zurich
Complete sequence of Orthohantavirus andesense virus: Swiss resident 2026
Posted on behalf of the Swiss National Reference Center for Emerging Viral Infections, Geneva University Hospitals and the Institute of Medical Virology, University of Zurich (Partner Laboratory Natio...
virological.org
🚨New paper!🚨 Our study showing that H5N1 influenza viruses can remain infectious in unpasteurised milk for, basically, as long as you are likely to encounter that milk has now been published: www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/jour...
We are incredibly excited to see our most recent story out @nature.com today:HIV triggers CD4-signaling to remodel nuclear pores and license infection!A heroic effort led by our very own @d-mesner.bsky.social & @mattvxwhelan.bsky.social! @blizardinstitute.bsky.social Link: tinyurl.com/HIVNup 1/11
Still time to apply for one of three joint virology PhDs @cvrinfo.bsky.social and @pirbrightinst.bsky.social, including one with myself and the fantastic @peacockflu.bsky.social! Informal enquiries welcome by e-mail (including re the primary location of ours, which is negotiable), deadline 8th May
Ed Hutchinson@socialinfluenza.bsky.social · 4mo agoAre you excited by virology? Would you like to do a PhD? Three fantastic opportunities are available to do joint PhDs between @cvrinfo.bsky.social and @pirbrightinst.bsky.social Details in the thread below - please share! Deadline 8th May 2026, fully funded for UK Home students (1/4)
Excited to advertise a fully funded PhD with @socialinfluenza.bsky.social investigating how influenza virus evolution differs between different avian hosts (and how this impacts pandemic potential). Joint between @pirbrightinst.bsky.social + @cvrinfo.bsky.social www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
FULLY FUNDED PhD - Visualising avian influenza virus tropism and co-infection in avian hosts at University of Glasgow on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - FULLY FUNDED PhD - Visualising avian influenza virus tropism and co-infection in avian hosts at University of Glasgow, listed on FindAPhD.com
findaphd.com
As foot-and-mouth disease explodes in South Africa, experts warn of threats in other countries www.science.org/content/arti...
As foot-and-mouth disease explodes in South Africa, experts warn of threats in other countries
A viral strain originating in wild buffalo in Kruger National Park is spreading rapidly in cattle
science.org
Took a long time to get this done, 2-3 years on Figure 1 alone but glad it's finally out!! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Heart-nosed bat alphacoronaviruses use human CEACAM6 to enter cells - Nature
Human CEACAM6, which is widely expressed in the lung, is identified as a receptor used by the spike proteins of Cardioderma cor (heart-nosed bat) alphacoronaviruses to enter cells.
nature.com
We did a thing: Scientists find a new way coronaviruses can get into human cells www.cam.ac.uk/research/new...
Scientists find a new way coronaviruses can get into human cells
An international team of researchers has identified an East African bat coronavirus capable of entering human cells.
cam.ac.uk
🚨New pre-print!🚨 Using a panel of different H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b viruses and human seasonal influenza, and mammary explants from common beef and dairy cattle breeds, we add to the growing data showing that H5N1 spillovers into cattle should be seen as an ongoing risk www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
🚨New pre-print!🚨 Because influenza virions are highly variable in form no single method can show their molecular architecture in detail. Here, we integrate multiple structural and compositional approaches to identify new features of these beautiful virus particles www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Excited to advertise a fully funded PhD with @socialinfluenza.bsky.social investigating how influenza virus evolution differs between different avian hosts (and how this impacts pandemic potential). Joint between @pirbrightinst.bsky.social + @cvrinfo.bsky.social www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
FULLY FUNDED PhD - Visualising avian influenza virus tropism and co-infection in avian hosts at University of Glasgow on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - FULLY FUNDED PhD - Visualising avian influenza virus tropism and co-infection in avian hosts at University of Glasgow, listed on FindAPhD.com
findaphd.com
Our paper describing the #cryoEM structures of unusual spike proteins from marine mammal–infecting gammacoronaviruses is now published in PLOS Pathogens! 🐬 journals.plos.org/plospathogen...
Cetacean coronavirus spikes highlight S glycoprotein structural plasticity
Author summary Coronaviruses are well known for their ability to jump between species, a process driven mainly by the spike protein on their surface. In this study, we examined spike proteins from coronaviruses found in marine mammals (whales and dolphins) to better understand how these viruses evolve and interact with their hosts. Using structural biology and mass spectrometry, we discovered several unusual features of the cetacean spike proteins. These spikes contain an extra domain within their receptor-binding region that resembles cupin proteins, assemble into trimers in a novel way that hides the receptor-binding domains, and show clusters of sugars (O-linked glycans) near the sites thought to interact with host receptors. These distinctive features suggest that cetacean coronaviruses may use a different entry mechanism, in which the extra domain acts as a switch to reveal the hidden receptor-binding regions. Such a mechanism could affect which species these viruses can infect, how easily they cross species barriers, and how they evade the immune system. Our findings emphasize the structural diversity and modularity of coronavirus spike proteins, highlight the unique adaptations of coronaviruses in marine mammals, and provide insight into their potential to give rise to new diseases in other species.
journals.plos.org
Daniel Hurdiss@danielhurdiss.bsky.social · last yr.Think coronavirus spikes have run out of surprises? Think again. Our latest preprint dives into the highly unusual spikes of marine mammal coronaviruses. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... This #cryoEM study was led by @viralfusion.bsky.social, with key contributions from an amazing team.
Really excited to be able to share our latest preprint, describing how during its evolution in cattle, H5N1 has got better at using a type of alternative receptor that's abundant in cows, but not found in humans and birds. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Are you excited by virology? Would you like to do a PhD? Three fantastic opportunities are available to do joint PhDs between @cvrinfo.bsky.social and @pirbrightinst.bsky.social Details in the thread below - please share! Deadline 8th May 2026, fully funded for UK Home students (1/4)
Do you like microscopy? Do you think viruses are cool? Do you want to advance our understanding of one of the world's most important pathogens? Come and do your PhD with myself and the fantastic @peacockflu.bsky.social, at @pirbrightinst.bsky.social and @cvrinfo.bsky.social 🤓🦠🐓
FULLY FUNDED PhD - Visualising avian influenza virus tropism and co-infection in avian hosts at University of Glasgow on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - FULLY FUNDED PhD - Visualising avian influenza virus tropism and co-infection in avian hosts at University of Glasgow, listed on FindAPhD.com
findaphd.com
5 more dairy cows tested positive for #H5N1 #birdflu antibodies on the Dutch farm where a previous cow tested positive. No surprise that if 1 was positive, others would be too. This dairy farm is the first outside the US to report H5N1 transmission. www-melkvee-nl.translate.goog/artikel/1450...
Screening melkveebedrijf brengt nog vijf koeien met antistoffen tegen vogelgriep aan het licht
Op een melkveebedrijf in Noardeast-Fryslân zijn na screening vijf koeien met antistoffen tegen vogelgriep gevonden, maar er is geen actief virus aangetoond. Minister Wiersma verwacht volgende week een...
www-melkvee-nl.translate.goog
🚨New Pre-Print🚨 Although H3N2 subclade K has multiple mutations in HA, neutralisation assays with pre-epidemic human sera show only moderate antigenic drift, and vaccines used in the 2024/2025 flu season induced cross-neutralising immunity www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6...
First evidence in Europe of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5N1 infection in a dairy cow. Antibodies against H5N1 detected in a cow with mastitis and respiratory signs on a Dutch dairy farm at the end of December. A cat on that farm had died from H5N1. www.tweedekamer.nl/downloads/do...
Interested in high containment work on viruses? We have an opening at the Pirbright Institute, working on high consequence viruses of livestock and humans in the core CL3 team. isw.changeworknow.co.uk/pirbright/vm...
CL3- Research Assistant
The Pirbright Institute The Pirbright Institute delivers world-leading research to understand, predict, detect and respond to viral disease outbreaks. We study viruses of livestock that are endemic a...
isw.changeworknow.co.uk
Really excited our paper about how H5N1 rapidly adapted to cattle (and how these adaptations also increased its ability to infect cells from the human respiratory tract) is now published! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Polymerase mutations underlie early adaptation of H5N1 influenza virus to dairy cattle and other mammals - Nature Communications
Avian influenza jumped from wild birds into dairy cattle. Here, the authors report that two mutations in the viral polymerase helped the virus to quickly adapt to cattle. Mutations increased the polym...
nature.com
We find that subclade K viruses are antigenically advanced; however, this year's flu vaccine surprisingly elicited antibodies in many individuals that efficiently recognized these viruses. The implications are clear: go get this year’s vaccine if you haven’t already! www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6...
Antibodies elicited by the 2025-2026 influenza vaccine in humans
A new H3N2 variant (named subclade K) possesses several key hemagglutinin substitutions and is circulating widely during the 2025-2026 influenza season. In this report, we completed experiments to det...
medrxiv.org
#H5N1 : An infected herd was recently detected in Wisconsin, and genome sequencing indicates that this is yet another spillover event, making it the fourth detected one. How do these spillovers happen and why are they restricted, so far, to the US? www.aphis.usda.gov/news/agency-...
