JenneinCA Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 My daughter has come up with the "stump Mom" question of the day. She wants to know: "Can a jellyfish get the flu?" I have no idea. Google isn't helping. Do we have any marine biology people who could answer? She is 11 and thinks she would like to become a marine biologist someday, with these kinds of questions she just might! Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
********* Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 Wow, um, that's a good one! Zee likes to ask me things like that, too. You know, the kind of questions that you have NO IDEA how to answer. :D BTW, I have no idea. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sputterduck Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 I don't think so. I would think that their cells are so far different from the animals that normally get the flu that the virus wouldn't work on them. Ferrets, dogs, cats, poultry and seals do though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenneinCA Posted November 19, 2009 Author Share Posted November 19, 2009 I don't think so either. The fact that jellyfish don't have lungs makes it unlikely to cause issues with their lungs. But I imagine that there are other jellyfish viruses... Maybe we will get a for sure answer... I am glad to know there are other children who like to play "Stump Mom". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perry Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 Probably not. Influenza was previously thought to only infect vertebrates, although there is some recent evidence that insects (mosquitos, blowflies) can be infected. In order to infect an animal, the influenza virus needs to infect a cell with a sialic acid receptor. These cells are found mainly in the respiratory tract in mammals, but in the gastrointestinal tract in birds. I don't know if jellyfish have sialic acid receptors, but they don't have specialized respiratory or digestive systems, so I think it would be unlikely. But I doubt if anyone has ever looked, so I wouldn't want to say a definite no. Since the natural reservoir for all influenza viruses is wild waterfowl (ducks, shorebirds) it would be interesting to know whether marine animals inhabiting those ecosystems are infected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perry Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 I don't think so either. The fact that jellyfish don't have lungs makes it unlikely to cause issues with their lungs. But I imagine that there are other jellyfish viruses... I don't know anything about jellyfish, but viruses can infect any cell, including bacteria, so I'm sure jellyfish have some sort of infections. I'll bet the answer's in here somewhere. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenneinCA Posted November 19, 2009 Author Share Posted November 19, 2009 WOW! Thank you. I am so happy that there is a place where I can ask these truly weird questions. Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 Dunno, but oysters can get TB. Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillfarm Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 Zoonotic illnesses are those that can be transmitted between humans and animals (other vertebrates). Here is an interesting discussion of this.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoonosis In some cases, invertebrates are the vector/mechanism by which the illnesses are actually transferred from the host to the new victim. They carry it but don't get infected with it themselves. I used to be a marine biologist and I have never heard of any illnesses crossing over from jellyfish to humans, other than the normal bacterial yucky stuff which is more of a function of the bacterial organism than the jellyfish. However, I have seen instances of various marine invertebrates and reptiles getting their own viruses. We were always advised to proceed with the assumption that it WAS zoonotic because so little was known about what could be transmitted back and forth. Sea turtles have had a problem with a papilloma virus in the last 20 years or so and dolphins have had a problem with a virus called erisipelas, which is one that humans can catch and is called erisipeloid in humans. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 It's posts like these that keep me hanging around here. No where else in my life do people discuss these kinds of questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 My answer is NO. No, a jellyfish NOT get the flu because I am not 1. going to have a pet jellyfish, 2. live underwater and breathe with a jellyfish, or 3. kiss anyone's pet jellyfish. So, final answer. No. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenneinCA Posted November 19, 2009 Author Share Posted November 19, 2009 She is now off researching oysters and tb (no luck). She looked at Zoonosis. Now on to West Nile virus. I am not sure where this whole thing is going to go, but I am sure on a ride. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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