Researchers in China have discovered a new type of swine flu that is capable of triggering a pandemic, according to a study published Monday in the US science journal PNAS.Named G4, it is genetically descended from the H1N1 strain that caused a pandemic in 2009.It possesses "all the essential hallmarks of being highly adapted to infect humans," say the authors, scientists at Chinese universities and China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention.From 2011 to 2018, researcher

Before the emergence late last year of the novel coronavirus, which has now killed more than 100,000 people, the 21st century's epidemics had been far less deadly than the pandemics of the previous century.Here are the major epidemics of the last two centuries, starting with the most recent:Ebola: 2013-2016 And 2018-To DateThe deadliest epidemic of the haemorrhagic fever Ebola broke out in West Africa in December 2013 and lasted more than two years, killing more than 11,300 people, mainl

The death toll from China's novel coronavirus outbreak rose to 717 on Saturday as the country seethes over an epidemic that claimed the life of a popular doctor and created global panic.The toll has now surpassed the number of people who died in mainland China and Hong Kong during the 2002-2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak, after another 81 people succumbed to the illness in central Hubei province.More than 34,000 people have been infected in China by the new strain,

China faced deepening isolation over its coronavirus epidemic on Saturday as the death toll soared to 259, with the United States (US) and Australia leading a growing list of nations to impose extraordinary Chinese travel bans.With Britain, Russia and Sweden among the countries confirming their first infections, the virus has now spread to more than two dozen nations, sending governments scurrying to limit their exposure.China toughened its own quarantine measures at the centre of the outbrea

From infrastructure damage caused by extreme weather events to drought-induced food insecurity, there are many climate risks for which the world should urgently be preparing. But one of the areas where climate change poses arguably the most significant risk is barely being discussed: human health.When natural disasters strike, the death toll from floods, famines, or building collapses is often just the beginning; the sickness and disease that follow sometimes do far more damage.