Preparing vaccines and therapeutics that target a future mutant strain of H5N1 influenza virus sounds like science fiction, but it may be possible, according to a team of scientists at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and a collaborator at Emory University School of Medicine.
The highly pathogenic version of avian influenza H5N1 that created havoc in the poultry sector last year, is likely to resurface in India, a top UN official warned today.
The United Arab Emirates has enforced a temporary ban on imports of all kinds of birds from India after bird flu was detected there.
GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK), one of the world?s largest vaccine manufacturers, announced that US health agency HHS has placed another order to purchase bulk H5N1 antigen for the US national stockpile of pre-pandemic vaccines. The company also announced the start of the first North American pre-pandemic vaccine trials in the company?s global pre-pandemic influenza program.
The Ministry of Health and Population of Egypt has announced a new human case of avian influenza A(H5N1) virus infection.
Without involving rural communities in the fight against bird flu, Indonesia will not be able to control the highly contagious disease, which has ravaged millions of poultry and already killed more humans in the archipelago than anywhere else in the world, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned.
With the Centre confirming an outbreak of the H5N1 strain of bird flu in Manipur, the state government today began culling 1.6 lakh birds within five kilometres of the site where the virus was detected.
Recent outbreaks of emerging diseases such as SARS and H5N1 avian influenza have underlined the fact that animal pathogens may acquire the ability to spread efficiently in humans ? but as yet have not. Monitoring the transmissibility of pathogens from animals in humans is therefore key for early detection of epidemic spread, and for effective control.
US HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt announced that the revised International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR) enter into force for the United States. The updated rules are designed to prevent and protect against the international spread of diseases while minimizing interference with world travel and trade.
The European Commission has been informed by the French and the Austrian authorities of new suspected cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza in wild birds in their territories. Germany has also confirmed the occurrence of disease in Thuringia.