Mighty dogs to the rescue. Once again, our canine companions are assisting in providing invaluable medical advances to mankind. Previous studies have shown that dogs can detect early stages of cancer as well as super bug infections in patients with hospital acquired infections. Now comes another gift from Man's Best Friend! Researchers at the University of Georgia have discovered that a virus commonly found in dogs, the parainfluenza virus (PIV5), could serve as the foundation for the next great breakthrough in human vaccine development. PIV5, which does not cause disease in humans , contributes to upper respiratory infections in dogs, and therefore is targeted in many canine vaccines. As the virus does not affect humans, researchers turned their eyes towards it as a potential delivery mechanism for human vaccines against diseases that have previously alluded development. Science has successfully used viruses to create vaccines in the past, although for some perilou
Resources to Maximize Life with your Canine Companion