Cat in Florida helps discover rare virus for second time

Cat in Florida helps discover rare virus for second time

Pepper, a feline owned by virologist John Lednicky, recently discovered orthoreovirus on a dead rodent.

Scientist's cat discovers a new virus, AGAIN

Pepper the cat made headlines last year when a mouse he caught tested positive for a type of jeilongvirus, which had never been seen before in the United States. Now, he has done it again, this time discovering a previously unknown strain of orthoreovirus, a type of virus that can infect humans, white-tailed deer, bats, and other mammals. — Read the rest The post Scientist's cat discovers a new virus, AGAIN appeared first on Boing Boing.

Adorable Cat Helps Scientists Discover New Virus (For Second Time)

A pet cat in Florida may have made scientific history by enabling the discovery of not one but two new strains of viruses. The cat in question, called Pepper, is like many cats, in that he likes to bestow affection on his human companion with thoughtful gifts of dead animals (surprisingly, orcas do this too). So Pepper's owner, University of Florida virologist John Lednicky, decided to take advantage of these usually unwanted and morbid presents…

Florida Cat Named Pepper Brings Home Never-Before-Seen Virus—for the Second Time

Pepper the pet cat has made yet another contribution to virology.

Florida cat sniffs out another new virus—and scientists are listening

A cat named Pepper has once again helped scientists discover a new virus—this time a mysterious orthoreovirus found in a shrew. Researchers from the University of Florida, including virologist John Lednicky, identified this strain during unrelated testing and published its genome. Although once thought to be harmless, these viruses are increasingly linked to serious diseases in humans and animals. With previous discoveries also pointing to a pat…

Cat makes yet another scientific discovery

A virologist's cat brought home a shrew, which he later discovered had an unknown strain of virus.