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Culling ordered after H5N1 virus discovered in Nepal and India
NEPAL – Health workers in Nepal are to cull thousands of chickens following the discovery of the H5N1 strain of bird flu in the southeastern part of the Himalayan country. “We sent samples for investigation to London after chickens started to die of a mysterious disease in commercial poultry farms,” said Ram Krishna Khatiwada, of the government’s Directorate of Animal Health. “We have received the test reports today that confirms infection of bird flu in poultry farms in Khanar and Ithari of the Sunsari district.”
INDIA: In Odisha, about 20,000 birds have been culled in a farm of Central Poultry Development Organization (CPDO) at Bhubaneswar following detection of avian flu H5N1 virus. Culling operation will resume today in the CPDO farm and the rapid response teams formed for the culling operation plans to cull rest of the 9,000 birds in the farm. AIR correspondent reports a huge pit has been dug to bury the culled birds and elaborate arrangements have been made for disinfecting the area.
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Fears ignited in Vietnam after H5N1 mutation discovered
VIETNAM – Vietnam is at a high risk of a large-scale outbreak of bird flu without drastic preventive measures in the near future, the country’s Department of Animal Health has warned. Bird flu has been reported in four communes in three provinces of Quang Tri, Thanh Hoa and Soc Trang over the past month, affecting nearly 1,700 poultry and forcing the killing of more than 4,000 domestic fowls, said the department’s deputy head Pham Van Dong at a meeting of the Steering Committee for Bird Flu Prevention and Control. A number of poultry suspected of catching the disease have started to appear in other localities such as Nghe An, Bac Lieu, Kien Giang, Ha Noi and Thai Nguyen.
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Schism over H5N1 Avian Flu Research Leaks Out
NEW YORK Sparks flew Thursday night at a New York Academy of Science panel discussion about whether or not certain recent research into the H5N1 avian flu virus has created a major biosecurity threat and what, if anything, to do about it.
Of the 583 humans who have so far been hospitalized with confirmed cases of naturally occurring H5N1 flu, 344 have died leading to a frighteningly high 59 percent case-fatality rate, according to the World Health Organization. Whether that ratio is a true mortality rate or whether many more people have been infected with H5N1 but have not gotten sick enough to be hospitalized remains a point of great contention.
http://news.yahoo.com/schism-over-h5n1-avian-flu-research-leaks-214400570.html
Live debate airs major divisions in H5N1 research battle
http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/influenza/avianflu/news/feb0312webinar-jw.html
Killer bug in the system
Professor Ian Ramshaw also says the new airborne H5N1 virus, modified in a way many believe will transmit it more easily between humans, has not been researched in a laboratory with the highest possible security level.
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/killer-bug-in-the-system/2443947.aspx?src=rss
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Key Facts About Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A (H5N1) Virus
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/gen-info/facts.htm
Related articles
- Pestilence watch: Culling ordered after H5N1 virus discovered in Nepal and India (theextinctionprotocol.wordpress.com)
- Vietnam reports another bird flu death (examiner.com)
- Debating research into mutant H5N1 flu virus (bellspalsycranialnerves.wordpress.com)
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