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The U.S. Food ​and Drug Administration ‌on Monday said that ​traceback investigation ​data gathered as part ⁠of ​a probe into ​an outbreak of cyclosporiasis pointed to ​shredded ​iceberg lettuce from Taylor ‌Farms ⁠locations in central Mexico. The agency's latest statement ​came ​after ⁠it had concluded ​that tests ​on ⁠the lettuce showed a ⁠false ​positive. (7/20)

The Food and Drug Administration’s reversal on a key piece of its cyclosporiasis investigation has sparked confusion in the U.S., but the agency said Monday that it has not changed its main conclusions about the outbreak. The agency said Sunday a test that indicated a sample of iceberg lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms de Mexico carried the cyclospora parasite was a false positive. However, that only applies to one specific shipment of lettuce supplied by the company, which the agency does not believe was the vehicle that sickened more than 1,600 people and potentially thousands of others. (Gomez, Neelakandan and Peebles, 7/20)

The hard, and nauseating, truth about cyclospora is that it’s spread through human feces. Over decades of research, scientists have not found a single place aside from the human gut where the parasite grows. So now that we’re in the midst of the largest recorded outbreak in United States history, one has to ask: How did human excrement get into our food? (Callahan and Hopkins Legaspi, 7/21)

Cyclospora is chlorine-resistant, has no animal reservoir, and requires time in the environment (often via contaminated irrigation water) before it becomes infectious. (Hoban, 7/21)

Did the Food and Drug Administration really walk back its recall of Taylor Farms iceberg lettuce? Can I eat romaine instead? And what can I do if I want to eat my favorite foods from Taco Bell? (Sun, 7/21)

The death toll in Congo’s Ebola outbreak has risen to at least 930, the country’s Ministry of Health said on Monday, with 37 new deaths reported in a 24-hour span Friday into Saturday, one of the highest totals. ... At least 36 health workers infected with the virus have died. (7/20)

Kenyan activists on Monday accused authorities of violating a court order from last month halting the setting up of an American-backed Ebola quarantine center after reports surfaced that Americans were being quarantined in the country. (Musambi, 7/20)

Some people have fought Ebola containment measures in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Scholars have seen similar responses across societies and throughout history. (Fink, 7/20)

The mood inside the National Quarantine Unit was electric with despair and fury. It was May 17, six days after United States health officials had evacuated 18 Americans from the cruise ship at the center of a hantavirus outbreak that had killed three people, and taken them to the special facility in Omaha, Neb., for what they had said would be a quick 72-hour evaluation before the passengers could go home to quarantine. (Mandavilli, 7/21)

After an outbreak of Andes hantavirus on a cruise ship infected 11 people and killed three earlier this year, a review published last week in JAMA Neurology highlights the often-overlooked neurologic complications of hantavirus infection. Brain and nerve involvement is uncommon, but it can be severe and may require both acute and long-term neurologic care. (Bergeson, 7/20)