The newer variant of avian influenza that recently infected dairy cattle in Nevada has a genetic change that’s thought to help the virus copy itself in mammals — including humans — more easily, according to a new technical brief from the US Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

Dairy cows in Nevada have been infected with a new strain of bird flu virus different from the one circulating in other herds throughout the past year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)

The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) recently confirmed the deadly bird flu genotype responsible for killing flocks nationwide was found in Nevada dairy cattle.