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Avian Influenza Daily Digest
November 28, 2008 15:15 GMT
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60-Day HPAI H5N1 Outbreak Map
2008 WHO Confirmed Human Cases HPAI H5N1
AI Daily Digest Archive
Article Summaries ...
Quid Novi
OIE: India Immediate Notification
India: Bird flu alert in Bhitarkanika
Indonesia: Suspected Human case in Denpasar
Indonesia: Bird Die-Off in Lampung Selatan
India: Bird flu scare in Assam, 300 poultry dead
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
FAO/GLEWS: Laos
11/21/08 FAO field officer--Two new outbreaks were reported in Sayabouli District, Sayabouli Province. The first outbreak was reported in Nator Noi (next to Nalao in the original red zone around Donengeun). The second one was reported in a military village camp,Phonexay, Kongphanh (18 km from Sayaboury District/province capital). The poultry of the concerned households has been culled.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
FAO/GLEWS: Indonesia Update
11/26/08 ? FAO field officer--During October 2008, Participatory Disease Surveillance and Control (PDSR) surveillance and investigation reports were received from 1,547 villages in 331 out of 448 districts, in 27 out of 33 provinces. During the month of October 2008, 32 (2.1%) infected villages were detected. As of 31 October 2008, 86.9% of surveyed villages were apparently free of the disease, 8.1% were suspected, 3.3% were controlled, and 1.6% were infected. Over the past 6 months, 20.3% (11,435) of villages in the districts with PDSR activity had been visited.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
FAO/GLEWS: Cambodia Update
11/21/08 UN System--During the 14-21 November 2008, the animal health hotline at the National Veterinary Research Institute (NaVRI) received 10 calls from Phnom Penh, Prey Veng, Pursath, Kampong Thom, Battambang and Kampong Cham Provinces asking information about avian influenza (AI) but no call reported sick or dying poultry. One human AI suspected case was found but was excluded after the investigation.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
FAO/GLEWS: Bangladesh Update
11/20/08 FAO/GLEWS--World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) The HPAI outbreak (mentioned on 9 October 2008, in the HPAI Update No. 351) that occurred in Naogaon Upazilla, Naogaon District has been reported to OIE as H5N1 virus. The outbreak occurred in Imam, Chak Moktar, Naogaon Sadar, Noagaon, Rajshahi. The outbreak started on 29 September 2008 and killed 760 out of 1,100 poultry from a commercial farm.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
West African Countries Train in Strategic Communications for AI Prevention
11/28/08 ARGUS--A seven-day training pertaining to strategic communications relevant to the regional surveillance of infectious and animal disease outbreaks, including avian influenza is hosted by the Ministry of Animal Resources of Mali and organized by the Center for Trans-border Animal Disease Emergencies in cooperation with the Swedish government. The main focus of the training is to create a homogenous communications network that will coordinate the prevention efforts of national networks. Animal health experts, physicians and communications experts from Ghana, Mali, Sierra Leone, Niger, Senegal, Togo, Benin, Mali, Guinea- Bissau, Gambia, Liberia, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Cote D?Ivoire and Cape Verde will all be included.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Pacific Avian and Pandemic Influenza Taskforce meeting underway in Fiji
11/28/08 Radio New Zealand--The Pacific Avian and Pandemic Influenza Taskforce is meeting in Nadi in Fiji this week to assess the region?s preparedness for possible outbreaks of infectious diseases. The Epidemiologist at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, or SPC, Dr Tom Kiedrzynski says preparedness will help Pacific countries control emerging scourges like severe acute respiratory syndrome and current epidemics such as dengue fever. A workshop on dengue is being held on Thursday following the three-day regional forum on avian and pandemic influenza preparedness.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Saudi Arabia: Authorities slap ban on hunting migratory birds
11/28/08 Arab News--Local authorities announced yesterday a ban on hunting of migratory birds that are flocking into the Kingdom by the thousands with the onset of winter.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
World's first pandemic logistics and learning exercise
11/28/08 Bernama--The world's first pandemic logistics and learning exercise, known as P2LX, is being held here to enhance readiness and response to a crisis situation triggered by the avian influenza or bird flu H5N 1 virus.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Pakistan: Govt asked to check bird flu outbreak
11/28/08 Daily Times--Pakistan Chest Society (PCS Centre) said on Wednesday that the provincial government had not yet taken any steps or provided any facilities in hospitals to prevent an outbreak of avian flu commonly known as bird flu which engulfed the province last year claiming two lives. ?The government has not honoured its promises that it made last year to prevent the lethal disease. It (provincial government) has not established even proper isolation wards in hospitals to stop spread of bird flu if it breaks out,? said PCS (Center) General Secretary Dr Mukhtiar Zaman at a programme held at Peshawar Press Club to remember two brothers who died of bird flu last year.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Nigeria: Gombe Wipes Out Bird Flu
11/28/08 All Africa--Gombe state government has wiped out bird flu in the state. The information desk officer of the state bird flu, committee, Mr. Kassim Toro made the claim in an interview with the Daily Champion in Gombe.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Knowledge about Avian Influenza, European Region
11/25/08 CDC EID Letter--Since the first identifications of avian influenza (H5N1) in Europe in late 2005 and early 2006, Eurobarometer survey data obtained during April?May 2006 have provided a unique opportunity to examine the knowledge of respondents across the European Union, Croatia, and Turkey about the risks and transmission of avian influenza. The H5N1 strain of avian influenza virus has caused >240 human deaths in central and Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Africa (1). Four of these deaths occurred in Turkey in 2006.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Science and Technology
Qatar University to conduct research on bird flu
11/28/08 AME Info--A team from Qatar University has begun studies on bird flu to help international efforts aimed at curbing the outbreak of the disease. This was announced by Dr Siham Yusuf AlQaradawi, the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS). She said the college attaches immense significance to international developments regarding bird flu, especially HSN1 and its impact on the health of humans.
AI Research
Avian influenza in poultry
November 2008 World's Poultry Science Journal [abstract]-- D.J. ALEXANDERa1 c1 and I. CAPUAa2 a1 OIE, FAO and European Community Reference Laboratory for Newcastle Disease and Avian Influenza, Virology Department, Veterinary Laboratories Agency Weybridge, Addlestone, Surrey, UK a2 OIE, FAO and National Reference Laboratory for Newcastle Disease and Avian Influenza, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10. 35020 ? Legnaro, Padova, ItalyAbstract Influenza A viruses that infect poultry can be divided into two groups. Very virulent viruses cause highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), with flock mortality as high as 100%. These viruses have been restricted to subtypes H5 and H7, although not all H5 and H7 viruses cause HPAI. All other viruses cause a milder, primarily respiratory, disease (LPAI), unless exacerbated. Until recently, HPAI viruses were rarely isolated from wild birds, but for LPAI viruses extremely high isolation rates have been recorded in surveillance studies. Influenza viruses may infect all types of domestic or captive birds in all areas of the world. The frequency with which primary infections occur in any type of bird usually depends on the degree of contact there is with feral birds. Secondary spread is typically associated with human involvement, either by birds or bird product movement or by transferring infective faeces from infected to susceptible birds, but potentially wild birds can be involved. In recent years the frequency of HPAI outbreaks appears to have increased and there have been particularly costly outbreaks of HPAI in densely populated poultry areas in Italy, The Netherlands and Canada. In each outbreak millions of birds were slaughtered to bring the outbreaks under control. Since the 1990s, AI infections due to two subtypes have been widespread in poultry across a large area of the World. LPAI H9N2 appears to have spread across the whole of Asia in that time and has become endemic in poultry in many of the affected countries. However, these outbreaks have been overshadowed by the H5N1 HPAI virus, initially isolated in China that has now spread in poultry and/or wild birds throughout Asia and into Europe and Africa, resulting in the death or culling of hundreds of millions of poultry and posing a significant zoonosis threat. To date control methods seem to have been unsuccessful on the larger scale and HPAI H5N1 outbreaks continue to be reported.
AI Research
Japan to Double Anti-Flu Drug Stockpile for Pandemic
11/28/08 Bloomberg--Japan plans to almost double its stockpile of anti-flu drugs in case of a pandemic that could kill millions of people worldwide, the government said.
Antivirals
Characterization of H9N2 influenza viruses isolated from vaccinated flocks in an integrated broiler chicken operation in eastern China during a 5 year period (1998?2002)
11/25/08 Journal of General Virology--[abstract]--In the current study, we characterized H9N2 influenza viruses isolated from vaccinated flocks in an integrated broiler chicken operation during a 5 year period (1998?2002). Phylogenetic analysis of the 8 genes of 11 representative viruses showed that they all shared high similarity to that of the first isolate, A/Chicken/Shanghai/F/1998 (Ck/SH/F/98), and clustered to the same lineages. Furthermore, all 11 viruses had a 9 nt deletion between positions 206 and 214 of the neuraminidase gene. These genetic characteristics strongly suggest that these viruses are descendants of the first isolate. In addition, our study also showed that the H9N2 viruses circulating in the operation during this 5 year period were evolving, as shown by antigenic variations between viruses manifested by reactivity with polyclonal antisera and monoclonal antibodies, by haemagglutination with erythrocytes from different animals, by amino acid differences in haemagglutinin and neuraminidase proteins, and by variation in their ability to replicate in the respiratory and intestinal tract and to be transmitted by aerosol. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the internal genes from some H5N1 viruses of duck origin clustered together with those from H9N2 virus and that the RNP genes of these H5N1 viruses isolated after 2001 are more closely related to the genes of the Ck/SH/F/98-like H9N2 viruses, indicating more recent reassortment events between these two subtypes of viruses. Continuous surveillance of influenza virus in poultry and waterfowl is critical for monitoring the genesis and emergence of potentially pandemic strains in this region.
AI Research
Broad Cross-Protection against H5N1 Avian Influenza Virus Infection by Means of Monoclonal Antibodies that Map to Conserved Viral Epitopes
11/25/08 Journal of Infectious Diseases--[abstract]--Passive immunization with human H5 antisera or H5-specific monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) has potential as an effective treatment for acute H5N1 influenza virus infection, but its efficacy against antigenically diverse H5N1 viruses is unconfirmed.
AI Research
Pandemic Preparedness
FAO: Momentum builds for 'One World, One Health' concept
11/26/08 CIDRAP--At last month's avian flu conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, participants endorsed a new strategy for fighting avian influenza and other infectious diseases, one that focuses on points where animal, human, and ecosystems meet, according to a recent statement by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Pandemic Preparedness
Public AI Blogs
US military flu virus collection parallels WHO virus system
11/26/08 Labwatch--A large and rapidly growing global US military virus collection system parallels the World Health Organization's Global Influenza Surveillance Network (WHO GISN) but does not entirely share its public health purposes.
Public AI Blog Discussions
Full Text of Articles follow ...
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
FAO/GLEWS: Laos
11/21/08 FAO field officer--Two new outbreaks were reported in Sayabouli District, Sayabouli Province. The first outbreak was reported in Nator Noi (next to Nalao in the original red zone around Donengeun). The second one was reported in a military village camp,Phonexay, Kongphanh (18 km from Sayaboury District/province capital). The poultry of the concerned households has been culled.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
FAO/GLEWS: Indonesia Update
11/26/08 ? FAO field officer--During October 2008, Participatory Disease Surveillance and Control (PDSR) surveillance and investigation reports were received from 1,547 villages in 331 out of 448 districts, in 27
out of 33 provinces. During the month of October 2008, 32 (2.1%) infected villages were detected. As of 31 October 2008, 86.9% of surveyed villages were apparently free of the disease, 8.1% were suspected, 3.3% were controlled, and 1.6% were infected. Over the past 6 months, 20.3% (11,435) of villages in the districts with PDSR activity had been visited. Of these, 567 (5.0%) villages were classified as infected at the time of their visit. Cumulative infection rates varied widely among provinces, but most were <5%. Focal culling
was implemented in 27.9% of infected villages. Most (70.2%) of the PDSR surveillance and investigation activities were scheduled village visits, while the remainder were either in response to notifications from communities or the government (9.4%) or follow-up visits from previous activities (20.4%).
As of 31 October 2008, and in comparison with the situation on 30 September 2008, the proportion of apparently free villages increased and the proportion of infected villages decreased. Infected villages during October 2008 were concentrated in Central Java, but they were also scattered
through Sumatera and some were present in South Sulawesi. No cases were reported in Kalimantan and Bali. Cases over the last 6 months have been most concentrated in Central Java.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
FAO/GLEWS: Cambodia Update
11/21/08 UN System--During the 14-21 November 2008, the animal health hotline at the National Veterinary Research Institute (NaVRI) received 10 calls from Phnom Penh, Prey Veng, Pursath, Kampong Thom, Battambang and Kampong Cham Provinces asking information about avian influenza (AI) but no call reported sick or dying poultry. One human AI suspected case was found but was excluded after the investigation.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
FAO/GLEWS: Bangladesh Update
11/20/08 FAO/GLEWS--World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) The HPAI outbreak (mentioned on 9 October 2008, in the HPAI Update No. 351) that occurred in Naogaon Upazilla, Naogaon District has been reported to OIE as H5N1 virus. The outbreak occurred in Imam, Chak Moktar, Naogaon Sadar, Noagaon, Rajshahi. The outbreak started on 29 September 2008 and killed 760 out of 1,100 poultry from a commercial farm.
Quid Novi
OIE: Vietnam, Follow up #22
Highly pathogenic avian influenza,
Vietnam
Information received on 27/11/2008 from Mr Bui Quang Anh, Chief Veterinary Officer, Department of Animal Health, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, HANOI, Vietnam
Summary
Report type Follow-up report No. 22
Start date 07/12/2006
Date of first confirmation of the event 19/12/2006
Report date 27/11/2008
Date submitted to OIE 27/11/2008
Reason for notification Reoccurrence of a listed disease
Date of previous occurrence 10/08/2006
Causal agent Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus
Serotype H5N1
Nature of diagnosis Clinical, Laboratory (basic), Laboratory (advanced)
This event pertains to a defined zone within the country
Related reports
* Immediate notification (19/12/2006)
* Follow-up report No. 1 (04/01/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 2 (17/01/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 3 (27/02/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 4 (23/03/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 5 (02/04/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 6 (17/05/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 7 (24/05/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 8 (07/06/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 9 (05/07/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 10 (14/09/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 11 (11/10/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 12 (31/10/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 13 (12/11/2007)
* Follow-up report No. 14 (07/01/2008)
* Follow-up report No. 15 (01/02/2008)
* Follow-up report No. 16 (23/02/2008)
* Follow-up report No. 17 (12/03/2008)
* Follow-up report No. 18 (01/04/2008)
* Follow-up report No. 19 (23/04/2008)
* Follow-up report No. 20 (14/07/2008)
* Follow-up report No. 21 (30/09/2008)
* Follow-up report No. 22 (27/11/2008)
New outbreaks
Outbreak 1 Hong Thinh, Dien Hong, Dien Chau, NGHE AN
Date of start of the outbreak 30/10/2008
Outbreak status Continuing (or date resolved not provided)
Epidemiological unit Farm
Affected animals
Species Susceptible Cases Deaths Destroyed Slaughtered
Birds 1423 1400 1156 267 0
Affected population The introduction of unvaccinated young ducklings into an existing flock was determined as the cause of the outbreak.
Outbreak 2 Quynh Chau, Quynh Chao, Quynh Luu, NGHE AN
Date of start of the outbreak 24/09/2008
Outbreak status Resolved (16/10/2008)
Epidemiological unit Farm
Affected animals
Species Susceptible Cases Deaths Destroyed Slaughtered
Birds 960 350 300 660 0
Affected population an unvaccinated village duck flock.
Summary of outbreaks Total outbreaks: 2
Total animals affected
Species Susceptible Cases Deaths Destroyed Slaughtered
Birds 2383 1750 1456 927 0
Outbreak statistics
Species Apparent morbidity rate Apparent mortality rate Apparent case fatality rate Proportion susceptible animals lost*
Birds 73.44% 61.10% 83.20% 100.00%
* Removed from the susceptible population through death, destruction and/or slaughter
Epidemiology
Source of the outbreak(s) or origin of infection
* Introduction of new live animals
* Illegal movement of animals
* Fomites (humans, vehicles, feed, etc.)
Control measures
Measures applied
* Quarantine
* Movement control inside the country
* Disinfection of infected premises/establishment(s)
* Modified stamping out
* No vaccination
* No treatment of affected animals
Measures to be applied
* Screening
* Zoning
* Vaccination in response to the outbreak (s)
Future Reporting
The event is continuing. Weekly follow-up reports will be submitted.
Quid Novi
OIE: India Immediate Notification
Highly pathogenic avian influenza,
India
Information received on 28/11/2008 from Dr Natarajan Gokulram, Secretary to the Government of India, Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries, Ministry of Agriculture, New Delhi, India
Summary
Report type Immediate notification
Start date 21/11/2008
Date of first confirmation of the event 27/11/2008
Report date 28/11/2008
Date submitted to OIE 28/11/2008
Reason for notification Reoccurrence of a listed disease
Date of previous occurrence 11/2008
Causal agent Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus
Serotype H5N1
Nature of diagnosis Laboratory (basic), Laboratory (advanced)
This event pertains to a defined zone within the country
New outbreaks
Outbreak 1 Hajo, Rajabazar, Kamrup, ASSAM
Date of start of the outbreak 21/11/2008
Outbreak status Continuing (or date resolved not provided)
Epidemiological unit Village
Affected animals
Species Susceptible Cases Deaths Destroyed Slaughtered
Birds 391 324 324
Affected population backyard poultry mainly in a small village
Summary of outbreaks Total outbreaks: 1
Outbreak statistics
Species Apparent morbidity rate Apparent mortality rate Apparent case fatality rate Proportion susceptible animals lost*
Birds 82.86% 82.86% 100.00% **
* Removed from the susceptible population through death, destruction and/or slaughter
** Not calculated because of missing information
Epidemiology
Source of the outbreak(s) or origin of infection
* Unknown or inconclusive
Epidemiological comments Epidemiological investigation is ongoing. Stamping out of all domestic poultry is being applied in an approximately 5-km-radius zone around the outbreaks followed by compensation of the owners.
An intensive surveillance campaign has been launched in a 10-km-radius zone including:
- closure of poultry markets and prohibition on sale and transportation of poultry products in the infected zone;
- disinfection of premises after culling and sealing of premises where appropriate.
Restocking will be applied in accordance with a specific protocol.
Control measures
Measures applied
* Stamping out
* Quarantine
* Movement control inside the country
* Screening
* No vaccination
* No treatment of affected animals
Measures to be applied
* Disinfection of infected premises/establishment(s)
* Dipping / Spraying
Diagnostic test results
Laboratory name and type High Security Animal Disease Laboratory, Bhopal (National laboratory)
Tests and results
Species Test Test date Result
Birds real-time PCR 27/11/2008 Positive
Birds reverse transcription - polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) 27/11/2008 Positive
Birds virus isolation 27/11/2008 Positive
Future Reporting
The event is continuing. Weekly follow-up reports will be submitted.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
West African Countries Train in Strategic Communications for AI Prevention
11/28/08 ARGUS--A seven-day training pertaining to strategic communications relevant to the regional surveillance of infectious and animal disease outbreaks, including avian influenza is hosted by the Ministry of Animal Resources of Mali and organized by the Center for Trans-border Animal Disease Emergencies in cooperation with the Swedish government. The main focus of the training is to create a homogenous communications network that will coordinate the prevention efforts of national networks. Animal health experts, physicians and communications experts from Ghana, Mali, Sierra Leone, Niger, Senegal, Togo, Benin, Mali, Guinea- Bissau, Gambia, Liberia, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Cote D?Ivoire and Cape Verde will all be included.
Article URL(s)
http://www.maliweb.net/category.php?NID=38195
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Pacific Avian and Pandemic Influenza Taskforce meeting underway in Fiji
11/28/08 Radio New Zealand--The Pacific Avian and Pandemic Influenza Taskforce is meeting in Nadi in Fiji this week to assess the region?s preparedness for possible outbreaks of infectious diseases. The Epidemiologist at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, or SPC, Dr Tom Kiedrzynski says preparedness will help Pacific countries control emerging scourges like severe acute respiratory syndrome and current epidemics such as dengue fever. A workshop on dengue is being held on Thursday following the three-day regional forum on avian and pandemic influenza preparedness.
The SPC?s Animal Health and Production adviser, Dr Ken Cokanasiga, says Pacific Island countries are still vulnerable to bird flu virus, which is persisting in countries adjacent to the region, such as Indonesia. Animal health specialits will also meet this week to discuss issues specific to improving regional respose capacity for emergency animal diseases that may threaten not only food security but also human lives.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Saudi Arabia: Authorities slap ban on hunting migratory birds
11/28/08 Arab News--Local authorities announced yesterday a ban on hunting of migratory birds that are flocking into the Kingdom by the thousands with the onset of winter.
An official from the National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development (NCWCD) told Arab News that although the Kingdom is free of the H5N1 bird flu virus, the government wants to avoid exposure from wild migratory birds.
?There are chances that some of these birds can bring in the disease to places where they temporarily take shelter, and hunting them would make matters worse,? the official said.
The migratory birds mostly come from East Europe and West Asia.
The Ministry of Interior, in cooperation with the NCWCD, regulates the hunting season in the Kingdom.
?The year is divided into eight hunting seasons,? he said. ?Six of them are devoted to birds and two are for dhub (a large desert lizard) and rabbits.?
Besides migratory birds, falcons are the most commonly hunted birds in the Kingdom. They are captured alive. Falcons are mostly found in areas such as Al-Jouf, Tabuk, Qurayat and along the Red Sea coast.
Different species of falcons include Sakr, Green and Lanner falcons and its prices range from SR10,000 to SR100,000. The hunted falcons are either sold in the open market or they are tamed as hunting birds.
Migratory birds are mostly found in Al-Hair in Riyadh, Al-Asfar Lake, Jubail Marine Protected Area, Dawmat Al-Jandal and the Farasan Islands.
AI Research
Qatar University to conduct research on bird flu
11/28/08 AME Info--A team from Qatar University has begun studies on bird flu to help international efforts aimed at curbing the outbreak of the disease. This was announced by Dr Siham Yusuf AlQaradawi, the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS). She said the college attaches immense significance to international developments regarding bird flu, especially HSN1 and its impact on the health of humans.
AI Research
Avian influenza in poultry
November 2008 World's Poultry Science Journal [abstract]--
D.J. ALEXANDERa1 c1 and I. CAPUAa2
a1 OIE, FAO and European Community Reference Laboratory for Newcastle Disease and Avian Influenza, Virology Department, Veterinary Laboratories Agency Weybridge, Addlestone, Surrey, UK
a2 OIE, FAO and National Reference Laboratory for Newcastle Disease and Avian Influenza, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10. 35020 ? Legnaro, Padova, ItalyAbstract
Influenza A viruses that infect poultry can be divided into two groups. Very virulent viruses cause highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), with flock mortality as high as 100%. These viruses have been restricted to subtypes H5 and H7, although not all H5 and H7 viruses cause HPAI. All other viruses cause a milder, primarily respiratory, disease (LPAI), unless exacerbated. Until recently, HPAI viruses were rarely isolated from wild birds, but for LPAI viruses extremely high isolation rates have been recorded in surveillance studies. Influenza viruses may infect all types of domestic or captive birds in all areas of the world. The frequency with which primary infections occur in any type of bird usually depends on the degree of contact there is with feral birds. Secondary spread is typically associated with human involvement, either by birds or bird product movement or by transferring infective faeces from infected to susceptible birds, but potentially wild birds can be involved. In recent years the frequency of HPAI outbreaks appears to have increased and there have been particularly costly outbreaks of HPAI in densely populated poultry areas in Italy, The Netherlands and Canada. In each outbreak millions of birds were slaughtered to bring the outbreaks under control. Since the 1990s, AI infections due to two subtypes have been widespread in poultry across a large area of the World. LPAI H9N2 appears to have spread across the whole of Asia in that time and has become endemic in poultry in many of the affected countries. However, these outbreaks have been overshadowed by the H5N1 HPAI virus, initially isolated in China that has now spread in poultry and/or wild birds throughout Asia and into Europe and Africa, resulting in the death or culling of hundreds of millions of poultry and posing a significant zoonosis threat. To date control methods seem to have been unsuccessful on the larger scale and HPAI H5N1 outbreaks continue to be reported.
Public AI Blog Discussions
US military flu virus collection parallels WHO virus system
11/26/08 Labwatch--A large and rapidly growing global US military virus collection system parallels the World Health Organization's Global Influenza Surveillance Network (WHO GISN) but does not entirely share its public health purposes.
The US military system is a source of viruses for the WHO GISN; but it does not give most of its virus collections to WHO. It does keep all the lab specimens and viruses it collects for its own use.
Wider knowledge of the extent of the US military virus collection system and its ambiguous relationship to the WHO GISN system will raise important questions for the WHO Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Inter-Governmental Meeting (PIP IGM), which will convene in Geneva the second week of December.
The extent of the Pentagon's quiet but large virus collecting and its relationships with the WHO GISN will surprise many. For example, the Pentagon claims credit for having collected several important influenza viruses that were subsequently selected by WHO for use in seasonal and H5N1 pre-pandemic vaccines from 2000 through the present, including viruses from Panama, Peru, Nepal, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
Some developed countries, including the United States, have insisted that developing countries only share influenza viruses with the WHO GISN and not bilaterally with others. Yet, contradictorily, the United States has a massive military influenza virus collection program, but only provides a very small percentage of the materials that it collects to the WHO.
It is unclear if and how viruses collected by the US military in other countries would be covered by a WHO GISN material transfer agreement because they are obtained and transferred outside what is now- understood to be the WHO system.
If one WHO Member State unilaterally amasses influenza viruses without full participation in the WHO access and benefit sharing system there is strong potential for the WHO system to be undermined.
Also undefined is the legal status of a virus received by the WHO system; but not from an approved lab of its country of origin - a situation that now frequently occurs due to the activities of the US military virus collection system.
The US military system is active globally, including at least 56 countries where it is collecting influenza viruses (as of 2007). The system pulls in clinical specimens and locally isolated viruses that are shipped to the United States. It provides some of these viruses to the WHO GISN network, mainly through the US Centres for Disease Control (CDC), a WHO Collaborating Centre in Atlanta, Georgia (and part of the US health ministry), but keeps all specimens and viruses for its own purposes.
The size and capacity of the US military program is dramatically expanding and has more than doubled in recent years. In 2005, it was active in 30 countries and included three BSL-3 labs and a total sample processing capacity of 9,000 specimens per year. By 2007, the network was active in 65 countries and included eight BSL-3 labs and the capacity to process 18,000 samples annually.
The network is named the US Department of Defense Global Emerging Infections Surveillance & Response System ("DoD-GEIS"). A DoD-GEIS program called the US Department of Defense Worldwide Influenza Surveillance Program focuses specifically on flu viruses.
The military network has "sentinel" sites around the globe, reported by US military sources to include 128 or more locations. These are installations where US military personnel are based, as well as collaborating non-military sites that collect samples from US personnel and local civilian populations.
In 2006-2007, the system collected influenza viruses from developing countries including:
-- Americas: Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Argentina.
-- Africa: Morocco, Libya, Egypt, Eritrea, Djibouti, Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Burundi, Gambia, Ghana, Nigeria, and Cameroon.
-- Middle East: Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, and Oman.
-- Central/South Asia: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Mongolia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, and Bangladesh.
-- Southeast Asia/Oceania: Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Philippines, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Solomon Islands.
A US Air Force lab at Brooks City Base in San Antonio, Texas coordinates the system. In 2006 and 2007, its systemwide budget was over $40 million per year. In the 2006-2007 flu year, the Texas lab alone processed 5,810 specimens from persons across the globe suspected to have respiratory infections. Of these, 2,444 tested positive for a respiratory virus, including 1121 positive for influenza virus. According to the US Department of Defense (DOD), "All original specimens are archived and kept for requests from [Department of Defense] partners or the CDC."
Another lab at a US Navy facility in San Diego, California processes an unknown number of additional samples. Of note, the Navy lab systematically isolates flu viruses from military personnel who become infected during port visits. Using this unusual collection method, in 2007, it isolated seasonal influenza viruses from countries including Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands after US Navy ships docked there and US sailors became infected while ashore.
Including the Navy lab and other facilities (see below), the military system handled an overall total of approximately 8,000 influenza and other viral cultures in 2007. Of these, only a small percentage are given to CDC. In 2006, this number was 120 viral isolates (about 1.5%), meaning that over 98% of the viruses collected by the US military program do not enter the WHO system.
In addition to the CDC, collected viruses (especially H5N1 viruses) are provided to US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) at Fort Detrick in Frederick, Maryland. USAMRIID is the historical home of the US offensive biological weapons program (terminated in 1969), and is presently the headquarters of the US military's biological defense effort. Drawing on viruses collected by the US military and WHO sources, as of 2007, USAMRIID maintained a collection of thirty different H5N1 strains plus many other flu types that it uses in research and provides to other US military labs.
According to the program, the primary purpose of the virus collection system is to ensure US military readiness: "The principal objective is to enable the rapid discovery of novel strain mutations that could trigger a pandemic and to monitor these strains for their ability to transmit and to causedisease... the priority of the DoD is to maintain readiness and protect the health of service-members and beneficiaries, the contributions from the [San Antonio-based] surveillance program also benefit the greater global health community."
Five overseas laboratories operated by the US Department of Defense act as regional coordination centres for the collection effort. The five labs are:
-- Naval Medical Research Unit No. 2 (NAMRU-2) in Jakarta, Indonesia.
-- Naval Medical Research Unit No. 3 (NAMRU-3) in Cairo, Egypt.
-- Naval Medical Research Centre Detachment (NMRCD) in Lima, Peru.
-- Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences (AFRIMS) in Bangkok,Thailand.
-- United States Army Medical Research Unit-Kenya (USAMRU-K) in Nairobi, Kenya.
With the exception of NAMRU-2, which was recently closed by the Indonesian government, each of the above labs works not only in the country in which it is located; but also in nearby countries, where laboratory and personnel detachments are sometimes placed.
NMRCD operates a high containment (BSL-3) lab in Peru, and coordinates virus collections in several South and Central American countries and, for example, has staff in Guatemala. In 2007, it reported that it is seeking to expand virus surveillance efforts in Ecuador, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
AFRIMS in Bangkok operates a BSL-3 lab and, in addition to work in Thailand, maintains a facility in Nepal and collects samples from other countries in the region. In total in 2007, AFRIMS collected over 1,000 respiratory samples from seven countries in Southeast and South Asia.
NAMRU-3 in Cairo has at least BSL-3 capability and collects human and animal influenza viruses. It is a WHO GISN H5 reference lab, submitting viruses both to other US government labs as well as WHO labs. NAMRU-3 maintains activities in many African, Middle Eastern, and Asian countries, from Ghana eastward all the way to Pakistan.
It states that in 2007, "From Egypt, 141 human specimens were received for influenza A/H5N1 reference testing, and 26 specimens tested positive for H5N1. H5 reference testing was performed on 459 animal specimens, with 92 positive for H5N1 from Afghanistan, Egypt, and Ghana." From these H5N1 isolates, MANRU-3 deposited HA gene sequence information for 74 strains in GenBank.
USAMRU-K in Nairobi collects virus samples from hospitals and Kenyan military facilities and says that it is developing collection capabilities through universities in Uganda and Cameroon and the Nigerian defense ministry. Flu viruses it collects are provided to the CDC and the US military.
Until the Indonesian government closed it, NAMRU-2 in Jakarta played a similar role, including coordinating US laboratory detachments in Indonesia, Cambodia and Laos. In 2007, it says that it collected and tested more than 4,500 respiratory samples in Indonesia alone. It is unclear what will happen to NAMRU-2's activities outside of Indonesia now that the Jakarta laboratory has been closed.
Other US military BSL-3 labs in the network are located in Germany and South Korea. The DoD-GEIS network also collaborates with the US Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), although the exact nature of the collaboration has not been publicly described.
Despite the Pentagon's claims that it has frequently contributed to WHO vaccine strain selections, none of the negotiating texts or background documents made available by WHO in the course of the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Inter-Governmental Meeting have discussed the large US viruscollection system that parallels the GISN, much less explained the relationships between the two.
Nevertheless, the purpose of the US military system does not wholly coincide with WHO's public health ends, and its activities at times do not appear to be compatible with most proposals for a revised WHO GISN virus and benefit sharing system.
The massive US military virus collection system, which parallels the WHO system yet does not currently operate under the same rules, creates an additional complication for diplomats seeking an agreement on virus and benefit sharing. Its extent and different purposes than the WHO system may also be of concern to some countries, particularly because WHO system virus sharing is for public health and not military purposes.
Efforts should be made to ensure that all virus collection and transfers take place within the WHO system, using a WHO material transfer agreement, and that virus collections for purposes other than public health not be permitted.
(* Edward Hammond is an independent researcher and an expert on patents and biological resources. He contributed this article to SUNS.)
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
World's first pandemic logistics and learning exercise
11/28/08 Bernama--The world's first pandemic logistics and learning exercise, known as P2LX, is being held here to enhance readiness and response to a crisis situation triggered by the avian influenza or bird flu H5N 1 virus.
Mercy Malaysia president Datuk Dr Jemilah Mahmood said the seven-day exercise beginning Monday, would among others, identify areas needing improvement in the logistics operation and management practices of senior logistics staff in pandemic situations. The exercise is organised by Mercy, World Food Program (WFP) and the World Health Organisation (WHO). "The P2LX is a simulation exercise geared at responding to a crisis situation triggered by a pandemic, such as the avian influenza or bird flu H5N 1 virus, in a controlled simulation environment. The P2LX learning exercise is important to us as a nation because of the involvement of all the different non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the corporate sector which are also assisting us in these programmes," she told Bernama here Wednesday.
Dr Jemilah said 158 local participants from Mercy and Red Crescent Malaysia were participating in the exercise. She said the simulation exercise was intended to act as a learning tool, allowing experienced logisticians who participate to apply their skills and knowledge. "The P2LX enabled participants to gain a clearer understanding of their role in the logistics inter-agency mechanism to highlight areas of response in a pandemic situation. This is the first time in the world that we are teaming up for such training," she said. Dr Jemilah said many international communities, such as the United Nations(UN), could learn from the experiences of Malaysian Government agencies in handling pandemic cases. She said Malaysia was chosen for this exercise due to the big support from the government.
Meanwhile, Avian and Pandemic Task Force World Food Program (WFP) chief Peter Scott Bowden said in early 2006, virus like SARS Influenza had spread across three continents and had proved an aptitude to infect and kill humans. "Based on history, there is a recycle in every 40 years for a new virus to spread, and no one can guarantee that it will not recur. Its ability to mutate and transmit from one person to another has triggered a global human influenza pandemic. Thus the objective of this exercise is to operationalise the plans, guidelines and idea on how we can operate in such situations," he said. The P2LX training, divided into theoretical and practical, is being held at the Kuala Kubu Baru fire and rescue department training centre.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Pakistan: Govt asked to check bird flu outbreak
Govt asked to check bird flu outbreak
11/28/08 Daily Times--Pakistan Chest Society (PCS Centre) said on Wednesday that the provincial government had not yet taken any steps or provided any facilities in hospitals to prevent an outbreak of avian flu commonly known as bird flu which engulfed the province last year claiming two lives. ?The government has not honoured its promises that it made last year to prevent the lethal disease. It (provincial government) has not established even proper isolation wards in hospitals to stop spread of bird flu if it breaks out,? said PCS (Center) General Secretary Dr Mukhtiar Zaman at a programme held at Peshawar Press Club to remember two brothers who died of bird flu last year. Muhammad Ilyas Durani and Muhammad Idrees, two brothers and victims of bird flu, had died on November 19 and November 30 last year. The deadly disease also attacked Muhammad Ishtiaq, third brother of Ilyas and Idrees, but he luckily survived. Ishtiaq also participated in the programme. Dr Zaman said vaccines to protect people against bird flu or to save infected people were not available in Pakistan. According to a 2008 report, 387 people had suffered from this disease across the world, out of which 245 died. staff report
Quid Novi
India: Bird flu alert in Bhitarkanika
11/28/08 Express Buzz--The Forest and Veterinary officials have sounded alert in Bhitarkanika after large numbers of migratory birds started arriving in the national park with the onset on winter.
The officials have also taken precautionary steps to detect any sick birds in the park and its nearby areas, said Dr Keshaba Chandra Mohanty, Chief District Veterinary Officer (CDVO).
Two years back, two scientists from Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) examined a few migratory and local birds to detect the presence of flu virus. But they could not find any trace of it, said the officer.
The forest officials have also sounded a flu alert in the heronry of the park where lakhs of migratory avian species have already arrived.
The Forest and Veterinary officials distributed leaflets and booklets among the villagers near the park to create awareness about the bird flu, said the forest officer.
Forest and veterinary officials are also keeping a watchful eye on migratory birds like bar-headed geese, Bramihin Duck, plovers and other migratory species as they were found carrying H5NI strain of avian influenza in past.
??Last year we collected blood and stool samples of about 300 avian species and sent the samples to Animal Disease Research Institute (ADRI), Bhubaneswar. Later, the officials of ADRI sent the samples to High Security Animal Disease Laboratory (HSADL) in Bhopal. However, the scientists of HSADL could not find any flu affected birds in Bhitarkanika. This year we will also collect blood samples of 300 birds shortly. We have also trained 40 poultry farm owners to detect sick hens,?? said Mohanty.
Antivirals
Japan to Double Anti-Flu Drug Stockpile for Pandemic
11/28/08 Bloomberg--Japan plans to almost double its stockpile of anti-flu drugs in case of a pandemic that could kill millions of people worldwide, the government said.
The country will hold medicine for 45 percent of its 128 million people from 23 percent now, according to guidelines by the Cabinet Office, the ministry of health and other ministries. No timeframe was provided to boost the stockpile.
Governments and the World Health Organization are stockpiling medicines in case of an avian influenza pandemic in humans. A flu pandemic could kill 71 million people worldwide and lead to a ``major global recession'' costing more than $3 trillion, according to a worst-case scenario outlined by the World Bank last month.
GlaxoSmithKline Plc's Relenza will account for about 10 percent of Japan's supplies and the government will also consider using drugs under development, Yoshinori Ito, a counselor at the Cabinet Office, told journalists in Tokyo today.
Emerging resistance to Roche Holding AG's Tamiflu, also known by its chemical name oseltamivir, has led governments to consider Relenza as an option for reserves. Japan held Tamiflu for 28 million people as of March, and has Relenza for 1.35 million.
The medicines offer a defense against the H5N1 strain of avian flu that has infected at least 387 people in 15 countries in the past five years, killing 63 percent of them.
Quid Novi
India: Meghalaya sounds alert
11/28/08 Times of India--With authorities in neighbouring Assam ordering culling of poultry after suspected cases of bird flu in its Kamrup district, Meghalaya on Friday sounded an alert to prevent outbreak of the disease in the state.
State's veterinary officials had a meeting to assess the preparedness and adopt measures to prevent the disease from spreading to the state.
A veterinary official said deputy commissioners of all districts have been asked to be on alert, even as he said there were no cases of suspected bird flu in the state so far.
He also ruled out culling of poultry as of now. Culling of poultry began on Friday in Kamrup district of Assam that shares border with Meghalaya's Ri Bhoi and West Khasi Hills districts.
Meghalaya already has in place 150 rapid response teams along with 2,170 personnel with protective equipment that was procured last year after the outbreak of bird flu in West Bengal.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Nigeria: Gombe Wipes Out Bird Flu
11/28/08 All Africa--Gombe state government has wiped out bird flu in the state. The information desk officer of the state bird flu, committee, Mr. Kassim Toro made the claim in an interview with the Daily Champion in Gombe.
He said that it was the prompt response of the state government which purchased drugs used in fumigating the entire area that prevented a possible outbreak of bird flu in the state.
According to him, reports reaching him had earlier showed that over three months ago, a man from BCGA area of Gombe bought some ducks from the popular Dadin Kowa Market and that the ducks were traced to the Bayo market, Bornu state.
He said as soon as the ducks landed in Gombe, hundreds of other chickens, guinea fowls and other flying birds caught up with the flu and within six hours, thousands were reported dead.
Quid Novi
Indonesia: Suspected Human case in Denpasar
11/28/08 Contributed by email--A national source reported one new human suspected case of avian influenza (AI) in Denpasar [capital of Bali], a 56 year old man from Ayu Island road No.19. The suspected case was isolated at the Sanglah Hospital on 26 November and is undergoing unspecified treatment. Reported symptoms include fever, runny nose and cough. The man is suspected to have contracted AI since an unspecified number of dead chickens were found near his home and are suspected to be AI-positive. However, the man?s blood test results have returned AI-negative results and his leukocyte count is 5300.
Pandemic Preparedness
FAO: Momentum builds for 'One World, One Health' concept
11/26/08 CIDRAP--At last month's avian flu conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, participants endorsed a new strategy for fighting avian influenza and other infectious diseases, one that focuses on points where animal, human, and ecosystems meet, according to a recent statement by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The groups' support for the "One World, One Health" (OWOH) approach, detailed in a 68-page strategy report, was overshadowed by news from the donor session of the meeting of a $350 million infusion of funds, led by the United States, toward the international fight against avian influenza, the FAO said. The meeting took place Oct 24 through Oct 26 and was attended by 530 participants from more than 120 countries and 26 regional and international organizations.
The FAO said the strategy paper was released on Oct 14 under the banner of the FAO, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, the United Nations Influenza Coordination System, and the World Bank.
The main goal of the OWOH approach is to shrink the risk and global impact of disease outbreaks by improving livestock and wildlife intelligence, surveillance, and emergency response through stronger public and animal health systems, according to the FAO. The approach calls on broad cooperation among disciplines and sectors and puts a high priority on "hot spots" for emerging infectious diseases.
"Delegates to the Sharm el-Sheikh meeting welcomed the approach as a starting point for future action and called for further elaboration of the concept and clear indications of the roles of all stakeholders in the process," the FAO said.
An emerging One World, One Health view
The Wildlife Conservation Society, a nonprofit group based in the Bronx, N.Y., that is active in 53 countries and manages wildlife parks and zoos, first introduced the OWOH concept at an international symposium in 2004. The ideas were presented as 12 recommendations that served as "Manhattan principles" for a more holistic approach for preventing disease epidemics and maintaining the global ecosystem to promote human and animal health, according to the report by the FAO and its colleagues.
Since then, the concept has picked up momentum through European and US initiatives, according to the strategy report. For example, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) established a task force in 2004 to address OWOH issues and frequently includes sessions on the theme at its regional and national conferences, according to background materials posted on the AVMA Web site.
At a December 2007 international avian flu conference in New Delhi, participants agreed that they needed a better understanding of the drivers surrounding emerging infectious diseases and singled out the OWOH perspectives as helpful for developing medium-term strategies to address emerging infectious diseases, according to the report.
New proposals take shape
According to the new report by the FAO and its collaborators, the OWOH approach includes five main strategies:
* Build robust public and animal health systems that comply with the WHO's International Health Regulations and OIE standards
* Prevent and control disease outbreaks by improving national and international response capacities
* Address the needs of poor populations by shifting focuses to developing economies and locally important diseases such as Rift Valley fever, tuberculosis, and foot-and-mouth disease
* Promote collaborations across sectors and disciplines
* Conduct research that guides the development of targeted disease control programs.
A benefit of focusing on problems that affect developing world areas is not only controlling the often-neglected diseases, but also promoting infectious disease surveillance at the local level, the report said. "Surveillance systems at the grassroots level that are based on engaging poor communities by addressing their immediate disease problems are likely to generate better cooperation and will be more robust and sustainable in the long term," it said.
Enhanced global collaboration among national and regional groups to improve disease surveillance and prevention will also help fight bioterrorism and agroterrorism, the report notes.
The global fight against avian influenza has already improved collaboration among the world's public health and veterinary groups, but a greater focus on pooling resources and forming effective synergies as part of an OWOH strategy can lead to a better understanding of the epidemiology of emerging diseases, faster identification of reservoirs, and more efficient control and prevention, particularly in poorer countries, according to the report.
To fund OWOH goals, the report suggests expanding the financial model that has been used since the January 2006 Beijing international avian influenza conference to include contributions from nonconventional donors such as groups that fight specific diseases, industry groups, and foundations.
"The introduction of a special system of levies at the international level to fund public health infrastructure in several developing countries, particularly fragile states, would need to be seriously considered," the report said.
Looking forward
Canada's government has offered to host a technical meeting in Winnipeg in early 2009 to further discuss the OWOH strategy, the FAO said in its press release.
Participants, including the groups that helped author the OWOH report, will likely discuss what the next steps would be toward implementing the strategy, how the measures could be financed, and how to encourage stakeholder buy-in, according to the FAO.
"Timely implementation will contribute significantly to the overall goal of improving public health, food safety and security, and the livelihoods of poor farming communities, as well as protecting the health of ecosystems," the FAO said.
AI Research
Characterization of H9N2 influenza viruses isolated from vaccinated flocks in an integrated broiler chicken operation in eastern China during a 5 year period (1998?2002)
11/25/08 Journal of General Virology--[abstract]--
Pinghu Zhang1,2, Yinghua Tang1, Xiaowen Liu1, Daxin Peng1, Wenbo Liu1, Hongqi Liu1, Shan Lu3,4 and Xiufan Liu1
1 Animal Infectious Disease Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, PR China
2 Jiangsu Center for Drug Screening, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210038, PR China
3 China?US Vaccine Research Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, PR China
4 Laboratory of Nucleic Acid Vaccines, Department of Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
Correspondence
Xiufan Liu
xfliu@yzu.edu.cn
In the current study, we characterized H9N2 influenza viruses isolated from vaccinated flocks in an integrated broiler chicken operation during a 5 year period (1998?2002). Phylogenetic analysis of the 8 genes of 11 representative viruses showed that they all shared high similarity to that of the first isolate, A/Chicken/Shanghai/F/1998 (Ck/SH/F/98), and clustered to the same lineages. Furthermore, all 11 viruses had a 9 nt deletion between positions 206 and 214 of the neuraminidase gene. These genetic characteristics strongly suggest that these viruses are descendants of the first isolate. In addition, our study also showed that the H9N2 viruses circulating in the operation during this 5 year period were evolving, as shown by antigenic variations between viruses manifested by reactivity with polyclonal antisera and monoclonal antibodies, by haemagglutination with erythrocytes from different animals, by amino acid differences in haemagglutinin and neuraminidase proteins, and by variation in their ability to replicate in the respiratory and intestinal tract and to be transmitted by aerosol. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the internal genes from some H5N1 viruses of duck origin clustered together with those from H9N2 virus and that the RNP genes of these H5N1 viruses isolated after 2001 are more closely related to the genes of the Ck/SH/F/98-like H9N2 viruses, indicating more recent reassortment events between these two subtypes of viruses. Continuous surveillance of influenza virus in poultry and waterfowl is critical for monitoring the genesis and emergence of potentially pandemic strains in this region.
The GenBank/EMBL/DDBJ accession numbers for the nucleotide sequence data obtained in this study are EU753271?EU753350.
Two supplementary tables are available with the online version of this paper.
AI Research
Broad Cross-Protection against H5N1 Avian Influenza Virus Infection by Means of Monoclonal Antibodies that Map to Conserved Viral Epitopes
11/25/08 Journal of Infectious Diseases--[abstract]--
Yixin Chen,1,a
Kun Qin,2,a
Wai Lan Wu,2
Guoqiang Li,1
Jun Zhang,1
Hailian Du,1
Mun Hon Ng,1
J. Wai-Kuo Shih,1
J. S. Malik Peiris,2
Yi Guan,2,3
Honglin Chen,2,3 and
Ningshao Xia1
1National Institute of Diagnostics and Vaccine Development in Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Cell Biology and Tumor Cell Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 2State Key Laboratory for Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology, and Research Center of Infection and Immunology, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, and 3International Institute of Infection and Immunity, Shantou University, Shantou, China
Background. Passive immunization with human H5 antisera or H5-specific monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) has potential as an effective treatment for acute H5N1 influenza virus infection, but its efficacy against antigenically diverse H5N1 viruses is unconfirmed.
Methods. Cross-protection against antigenically diverse H5N1 strains with H5-specific MAbs, generated by successive immunization of antigenically distinct strains, was evaluated in mice.
Results. A panel of 52 broadly cross-reactive H5 specific MAbs were generated and characterized. One of these MAbs, 13D4, has been demonstrated to protect mice against lethal challenge by 4 H5N1 strains representing the current major genetic populations, clades 1, 2.1, 2.2, and 2.3, even at a stage of infection when H5N1 virus has disseminated beyond the pulmonary system. Complete neutralization of virus in lung tissue of infected animals was observed 24 h after treatment with 13D4. Mapping of this MAb with escape mutants showed it to bind to 2 conserved, possibly critical, sites of H5N1 hemagglutinin, 152 and 182.
Conclusion. Generation of broadly cross-protective MAbs against H5N1 influenza virus may be optimized by selecting MAbs that target conserved sites in hemagglutinin. H5 MAbs such as 13D4 may prove to have therapeutic value in controlling infection due to current and future H5N1 variants.
Received 20 June 2008; accepted 24 July 2008; electronically published 20 November 2008.
Reprints or correspondence: Dr. Honglin Chen, State Key Laboratory for Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China (hlchen@hkucc.hku.hk); or Dr. Ningshao Xia, National Institute of Diagnostics and Vaccine Development in Infectious Diseases, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China (nsxia@xmu.edu.cn).
*
Potential conflicts of interest: none reported.
Financial support: National Key Technology R&D Program of China (grants 2004BA519A73 and 2006BAI01B06); National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant 30640017); Science and Technology Project of Fujian Province in China (grants 2004YZ01-1 and 2005Y020); Area of Excellence Scheme of the University Grants Committee (grant AoE/M-12/06); Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong SAR Government (grant RGC7619/07M); Li Ka Shing Foundation.
*
aY.C. and K.Q. contributed equally to this work.
Regional Reporting and Surveillance
Knowledge about Avian Influenza, European Region
11/25/08 CDC EID Letter--
Elias Mossialos and Caroline Rudisill Comments to Author
Author affiliation: London School of Economics, London, UK
Since the first identifications of avian influenza (H5N1) in Europe in late 2005 and early 2006, Eurobarometer survey data obtained during April?May 2006 have provided a unique opportunity to examine the knowledge of respondents across the European Union, Croatia, and Turkey about the risks and transmission of avian influenza. The H5N1 strain of avian influenza virus has caused >240 human deaths in central and Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Africa (1). Four of these deaths occurred in Turkey in 2006. Understanding gaps in the public's knowledge about avian influenza risks and transmission provides guidance on which issues future public health information campaigns may wish to focus. From a public health perspective, a more informed general public will be less likely to unnecessarily alter their travel and food consumption behavior and more likely to take appropriate preventive actions.
A 2006 Eurobarometer survey asked 29,170 residents of the 27 countries in the EU, Croatia, and Turkey about their knowledge of avian influenza risks (2). Eurobarometer surveys are undertaken by the European Commission to monitor the European Union public's social and political opinions. The survey was conducted on a multistage random sampling basis. Therefore, the sample is representative of the whole territory surveyed. Each country's population was randomly sampled according to rural, metropolitan, and urban population densities. A cluster of addresses was selected from each primary sampling unit by using country-dependent resources such as electoral registers. Addresses were chosen systematically by using standard random route procedures, beginning with a randomly selected initial address. The survey was conducted by face-to-face interviews in respondents' homes.
Data were collected from March 27 through May 1, 2006. This period is especially interesting when looking at Europeans' knowledge about avian influenza risk because the first European cases of avian influenza (H5N1) were found in October 2005 in Turkey; additional cases were found later that month in Romania, Croatia, and the United Kingdom. Therefore, the period would have included media coverage about avian influenza as well as any targeted public health efforts to inform residents about avian influenza risks. By the end of this survey's fieldwork period, 17 of the 29 countries surveyed had reported influenza virus (H5N1) in birds, 3 in mammals, and 1 in humans (3).
Respondents were asked 7 questions about their knowledge of the risks humans face regarding avian influenza (Table). When we looked at these results with the aim of setting future public health information campaign objectives, we considered incorrect or "don't know" responses to indicate public health information campaign failures. Uncertainty regarding avian influenza risks appeared to involve consumption of eggs and vaccinated, cooked poultry and whether the virus can be transmitted between humans. However, for all questions asked, more than half of the respondents answered correctly except when asked about eating poultry that had been vaccinated against avian influenza. This question also had the highest number of "don't know" responses. Respondents are most knowledgeable about the preventive measure of culling chickens, perhaps because of the media attention these events attract. The large percentage of correct answers for some questions points to successes of previous information campaigns and media coverage, but the 40% of respondents answering incorrectly or "don't know" to questions about poultry and egg consumption and human-to-human virus transmission leaves areas for further work.
These results support previous findings that knowledge about avian influenza, especially about prevention and human-to-human transmission, has scope for improvement (4,5). Persons in Europe reported that they have little ability to prevent themselves from getting avian influenza (6). Previous research in the Lao People's Democratic Republic examined how consumers' knowledge of avian influenza risk reduced the likelihood that consumers will substitute poultry for other foods during an avian influenza crisis. This research indicates the importance of informing persons about consumption and transmission-related risks to reduce the likelihood of unnecessary behavioral changes that can cause larger macrolevel market effects (7).
The state of knowledge about avian influenza in Europe during the outbreak in the spring of 2006 leaves room for further public health information campaign efforts, especially those that increase consumers' understanding of consumption-related avian influenza risks. Persons in Europe appear to be aware of culling procedures and the risks of touching infected birds but have a more limited understanding of how avian influenza in their region should influence their consumption patterns.
References
1. Sanco DG. Confirmed human cases of avian influenza since 1997 sorted by subtypes [cited 2008 May 27]. Available from http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_threats/com/Influenza/avian_influenza_human_en.htm
2. Eurobarometer. Avian influenza June 2006 [cited 2008 Mar 15]. Available from http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_257_en.pdf
3. World Health Organization. H5N1 avian influenza: timeline of major events [cited 2008 May 22]. Available from htttp://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/ai_timeline/en/index.html
4. Abbate R, Di Giuseppe G, Marinelli P, Angelillo IF. Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of avian influenza, poultry workers, Italy. Emerg Infect Dis. 2006;12:1762?5.
5. Di Giuseppe G, Abbate R, Albano L, Marinelli P, Angelillo IF. A survey of knowledge, attitudes and practices towards avian influenza in an adult population of Italy. BMC Infect Dis. 2008;8:36.
6. De Zwart O, Veldhuijzen IK, Elam G, Aro AR, Abraham T, Bishop GD, et al. Avian influenza risk perception, Europe and Asia. Emerg Infect Dis. 2007;13:290?3.
7. Suder G, Inthavong S. New health risks and sociocultural contexts: bird flu impacts on consumers and poultry business in Lao PDR. Risk Anal. 2008;28:1?12. PubMed DOI
Table
Table. Knowledge of human risks associated with avian influenza, European region, 2006
Suggested Citation for this Article
Mossialos E, Rudisill C. Knowledge about avian influenza, European region [letter]. Emerg Infect Dis [serial on the Internet]. 2008 Dec [date cited]. Available from http://www.cdc.gov/EID/content/14/12/1956.htm
DOI: 10.3201/eid1412.080858
Comments to the Authors
Please use the form below to submit correspondence to the authors or contact them at the following address:
Caroline Rudisill, London School of Economics, LSE Health, Cowdray House, Houghton St, London WC2 2AE, UK; email: a.c.rudisill@lse.ac.uk
Quid Novi
Indonesia: Bird Die-Off in Lampung Selatan
11/26/08 ARGUS-- national source reported a bird die-off of unspecified number of chickens in Rejomulyo village (Jatiagung district, Lampung Selatan regency, Lampung province) since 19 November. However, residents only reported the incident a week later. Local authorities suspected avian influenza; however, it has not been confirmed. They have sprayed disinfectant in the area. The source did not mention any testing or culling procedure.
All 17 districts in Lampung Selatan regency have been affected by the virus throughout 2008; meanwhile, all regencies in Lampung province are endemic areas for avian influenza. In 208, Lampung Timur and Lampung Selatan are the worst affected regencies in this province. The source noted that residents are expecting the provincial government to restrict poultry movement in the area since Jatiagung and the nearby Jatimulyo district are major centers for the poultry industry.
Article URL(s)
http://www.kompas.com/read/xml/2008/11/26/18262932/flu.burung.kembali.muncul.di.lampung.selatan
Quid Novi
India: Bird flu scare in Assam, 300 poultry dead
11/26/08 (IANS-- More than 300 poultry birds have died in the past five days in some villages in Assam, fuelling fears of bird flu, officials said here Wednesday, adding that a general alert was sounded in the area.A veterinary department official said up to 300 chicken and ducks died an unnatural death in some villages around Hajo, about 35 km west of Assam?s main city of Guwahati.
?We have sent samples for laboratory tests to Pune and Bangalore for confirmation. We don?t know for sure if the poultry deaths were due to bird flu,? a veterinary department official said requesting not to be named.
Authorities Wednesday imposed a ban on sale of poultry and have sounded a general alert in about 40 villages in a radius of five kilometers from the area where the deaths were reported.
?By Thursday we shall be getting the laboratory test reports and maybe we have to start the culling process as there has been large-scale reports of deaths coming in from nearby areas,? Kamrup district magistrate R.C. Jain said.
?We have imposed a ban on sale and purchase of poultry and have asked people in the area not to consume chicken or duck as a precautionary measure.?
A general health alert was also sounded in the area. Teams of experts are now camping in the area and were contemplating culling birds as a precautionary measure.
Residents of the area said a large number of birds were falling sick.
?We saw normal birds dying almost instantly without any symptoms. Now we find some of the poultry in the area a little sick,? said Biswa Das, a villager.
