Luoyang, a village now 410 dead pigs 122 dead dogs rule out H7N9- Don'know what it

..Don'know what it is though

2013-04-17 00:07:56 

Killed a total of 410 pig. The analysis showed that: the normal air and water quality standards, initially ruled out H7N9 avian flu.

Killed a total of 122 dogs. The analysis showed that: the normal air and water quality standards, initially ruled out H7N9 avian flu.

Luoyang the Yanshi a village now 410 dead pig 122 dead dogs official involved in the investigation initially ruled out H7N9 avian flu

The samples have been sent to the Ministry of Public Security to verify the incident to the chemical plant to temporarily suspend production farm and the surrounding disinfection

Zhongyuan Reuters (Reporter Chen Zujiang) the morning of April 15, the Yanshi City Mountain of the Town Tuncun sudden pigs, dogs and other domestic animals deaths. After the incident, the local immediately launched the emergency mechanism, the analysis showed that: normal, air and water quality standards, initially ruled out H7N9 avian flu. The sampling of this has been sent to the Ministry of Public Security inspection, incident to all chemical plants temporarily suspend production. 

April 15, the Yanshi City Mountain of Town Tuncun a large number of pigs, dogs inexplicable death, According to site statistics, on April 15, a total of 410 death pigs, dogs 122.

After the incident, the first time of the principal leaders of the municipal government has arrived at the scene to see the situation on the ground. The mountain town of livestock expert guidance, select the remote Huanggoushan, take the dug pit, liming, incinerated, buried deep approach, on the death of livestock carcasses concentrated harmless treatment. Meanwhile, the local Animal Husbandry Bureau organization professionals on the farm and the surrounding disinfection. Undergo a medical examination to confirm after the medical expert East Tuncun masses, found no abnormalities.

Local environmental, powered responsible departments, the mountain town of the territory of all the chemical plant on April 15 to take power measures temporarily discontinued all responsible person shall leave Yanshi, to assist the police accident investigation.

In addition, the local hire Country, Henan Luoyang City, livestock, chemicals, health, environmental protection, public security, safety supervision authority experts to form a group of experts, investigation and analysis of the causes of death in domestic animals. Currently, Luoyang City, livestock experts have basically ruled out the animal epidemic and the H7N9 avian influenza. The department of public security, livestock and other extracted the internal organs of the death of livestock, the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Public Security agencies were sent for examination.

Luoyang Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau experts have comprehensive investigation and investigation and evidence collection near chemicals, footwear and other enterprises; the Mountain Town Tuncun air were detected not detected in ammonia, chlorine, hydrogen chloride, hydrogen fluoride and other harmful gases; on The village drinking water and livestock water testing shows that water quality standards. The public security departments also organized police force early intervention Find clues related criminal investigation.

Currently, animal husbandry, environmental protection, public health, public security, safety supervision and other five departments and expert groups are fully investigating the cause of the incident, the official said progress with the test results to the community and the media for the first time announced. http://news.zynews.com/2013-04/17/content_4564795.htm

Henan the village large number of pigs and dogs death 

..It is understood that, since the morning of the 15th, Luoyang Yanshi City Mountain of Town Tuncun constantly villagers broke the news, said the pigs, dogs and other domestic animals in their own homes bizarre death scene pictures. From the scene pictures you can see dozens of dead dogs dumped at the roadside of the village; pig farms in the homes of villagers, a large number of dead pigs there were corpses. Local villagers said, to keep their homes, several hundreds of head overnight almost all died finished, no death has been dying.http://news.sina.com.cn/c/2013-04-16/234826846770.shtml

Shandong Dezhou river-More pigs

Shandong Dezhou river Jingxian worry about the problem of drinking water in the head by App villagers

 Shandong Dezhou riverside 5,6 dead pigs floating fairy lake sluice in majia River have been three or four days, somehow these dead pigs, very worried about the surrounding villagers. This avian influenza so much there are a lot of people drink the water of the Yellow River.

　　Texas: river Jingxian dead pigs nearby villagers worried

Video Source: the Shandong Public Channel "people's livelihood through train"

     Qilu Network April 16 hearing (Shandong broadcast television reporter Liu Yan) According to the Shandong public television channel "the people's livelihood through train" report comes to the river, and asked you a question, what is the river? You say for sure that this issue is too simple, river fish and shrimp, I tell you the river there are pigs.

　　According to insiders Mr. Han, have been poured, and wondering to see if the water flow a look dead pig. This avian influenza so much there are a lot of people drink the water of the Yellow River.

      Reporter saw in the bottom of the bridge, next to the iron plate, some the size of the dead pig, mild decay, there is the stench of taste. Nearby villagers said the dead pigs probably 5,6 head, floating the fairy lake sluice in majia River have been three or four days, somehow these dead pig the villagers around very worried. In addition to nearby villagers, was worried there often come here fishing anglers dead pig in the bottom of the sluice, these anglers usually difficult to find.

      Well, these dead pigs in the end come from? Nearby villagers, this neighborhood does not seem to pig farms, these dead pigs should be from the upstream, or someone shipped discarded here. In order to further understand the situation, the reporter found the person in charge of the sluice. Majia River the immortal Lake Sluice staff explained, never heard of before, was poured directly on this. The staff said that the sluice release on April 1 to April 10, off the gate, they did not find a dead pig, so they infer that someone may be directly dead pig lost in here.

　　These dead pigs come from, why they were discarded in this, they will not give the rivers pollution? We will also be follow-up reports. http://news.iqilu.com/shandong/yuanchuang/2013/0416/1505066.shtml

OIE warns over detecting bird flu in China

The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) has warned that the current outbreak of avian influenza H7N9 in China will be difficult to control, because birds infected with the virus show no visible signs of illness.

http://www.globalmeatnews.com/Industry-Markets/OIE-warns-over-detecting-bird-flu-in-China

Mission scheduled to arrive in China for assessment of H7N9 bird flu: WHO

English.news.cn   2013-04-16 23:41:51

GENEVA, April 16 (Xinhua) -- A mission is scheduled to arrive in China within the week for a week-long assessment of the H7N9 influenza in the country, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Tuesday.

The WHO spokesperson Glenn Thomas said given that the sources were still unknown, further human infections were expected, reaffirming "at the moment there are no signs of on-going human to human transmission."

The WHO announced China had invited a team of experts, consisting of Chinese experts on epidemiology, laboratory tests and clinical treatment as well as experts and officials from the United States, the European Union, Australia and the WHO to carry out a one-week joint assessment of the situation of this deadly disease in the country.

The team will go to the infected areas to assess the outbreak and transmission mode of the influenza, investigate technical characteristics of the virus itself such as source, reservoir and pathogenicity, and guide further prevention and control measures.

The WHO will look into the results in detail to support China to respond to the avian influenza emergency, Thomas told Xinhua.

Silvano Sofia, spokesman of Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), told reporters that the FAO was working closely with Chinese authorities to develop a market chain analysis to trace the sources of infected poultry back to the farms of origin to identify other infected farms.

She added that in light of recent events, the FAO was reevaluating surveillance protocols in domestic and wild animals.

Sofia commended the Chinese authorities' decisions to release virus information to the public and their agreement to share the virus information with the international community.

"The virus sequence released has allowed scientific communities to perform further analysis and to be better prepared for diagnosis and production of human vaccines," she said. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-04/16/c_132314388.htm

Foot-and-mouth disease confirmed in Xinjiang

English.news.cn   2013-04-16 23:32:30

BEIJING, April 16 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) said Tuesday that foot-and-mouth disease infections were confirmed in cows in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

On April 8, a farm in Lop County in Xinjiang's Hotan Prefecture reported that 12 cows showed suspected signs of the disease, according to the MOA.

The National Foot-and-Mouth Disease Reference Laboratory on Tuesday confirmed the cases as type A foot-and-mouth disease.

To prevent the disease from spreading, local authorities have sealed off and sterilized the infected area, where the 12 sick head of cattle have been culled and safely disposed of, according to the MOA.

Foot-and-mouth disease is a contagious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild species within the family Bovidae. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-04/16/c_132314383.htm

All Eight new bird flu victims 'critical': Xinhua

 AFP| Updated: April 16, 2013

SHANGHAI: China reported eight new human cases of H7N9 bird flu on Tuesday, all of them in critical condition, bringing the total number across the country to 71, state media said.

The new cases occurred in eastern China, the focal point for the outbreak which has claimed 14 lives in the two weeks since Chinese authorities said they found the strain in humans for the first time.

Three of the new infections are in Jiangsu, according to state news agency Xinhua which cited the province's health department. They are a 21-year-old woman, and two men aged 56 and 72.

The other five were in Zhejiang, where three men and two women aged between 56 and 72 tested positive for the virus.

As of Tuesday, Zhejiang has confirmed 21 H7N9 cases, including two that have ended in death.

A seven-year-old girl in Beijing who tested positive for H7N9 in the capital's only reported case so far will be discharged from hospital on Wednesday, Xinhua said.

She has been treated for the past six days and is now testing negative for the virus.

A four-year-old boy who had tested positive was discharged from a Shanghai hospital on Wednesday, said Xinhua citing local health authorities.

He has been the only confirmed case to make a full recovery.

Health authorities in China say they do not know exactly how the virus is spreading, but it is believed to be crossing from birds to humans, prompting mass culls in several cities.

Experts fear the prospect of the virus mutating into a form easily transmissible between humans, which would have the potential to trigger a pandemic -- but the WHO has said there is no evidence yet of such a development.

International experts are preparing to head to China to probe the outbreak, the World Health Organisation said Tuesday.

The mission, including four international flu specialists, is due to arrive in the coming days for a week-long investigation.

Taiwan announced on Tuesday that it is planning a permanent ban on the killing of live poultry in traditional markets amid concerns over the spread of the H7N9 avian flu virus in China.

Chinese state media Monday urged people to keep eating chicken and help revive the poultry industry, which lost 10 billion yuan ($1.6 billion) in the week after the virus began infecting humans.

Read more at:http://english.astroawani.com/news/show/eight-new-bird-flu-victims-critical-xinhua-12356?cp

China has found 77 cases of H7N9 avian flu cases and 16 deaths

Beijing BEIJING, April 16 (Reporter Ouyang Kai-yu) Chinese Ministry of Health and Family Planning Commission website the evening of 16 in its epidemic column published April 15, 2011 18 to April 16, 2011, report new people confirmed cases of the H7N9 avian flu infection in 14 cases, including six cases of Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangsu three cases.

Up to now, the country reported a total of 77 cases of human infection with confirmed cases of the H7N9 avian flu, which killed 16 people. The cases were distributed in Beijing (1) Shanghai (30 cases, 11 deaths), Jiangsu (20 cases, 2 deaths), Zhejiang (21 cases, 2 deaths), Anhui (3 cases, 1 death), Henan (2) 6 provinces and cities. The cases in the dissemination of state, has not yet found evidence of human-to-human transmission. (End) 

http://news.qq.com/a/20130416/001523.htm

Seoul toughens quarantine of passengers from China

Health authorities said Tuesday they toughened quarantine inspections of passengers from Beijing and Henan province, as China confirmed that the new strain of bird flu, H7N9, had spread to its capital.

Quarantine officials had been placing thermal image cameras only at arrival gates of flights and ferries coming from Shanghai and other eastern areas of China that previously had reports of human infection of the potentially fatal bird flu virus. 
The Ministry of Health and Welfare has also assigned more than 30 regional medical institutes to run diagnostic tests for sick travelers suspected of having the virus. Centers will also protect and isolate patients until they confirm the human infection of the virus, officials added.

The state-run Korea Centers for Disease Control under the health ministry said it had also requested hospitals across the country to report cases of patients who suffered from fever and respiratory illnesses and recently visited China. 

http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20130416000871

New confirmed cases of human infection of H7N9 avian influenza cases in Shanghai

Shanghai Published: [the city new cases, five cases of confirmed cases of human infection with the H7N9 avian influenza retrospective diagnosis] city new confirmed cases of human infection of H7N9 avian influenza cases today: Zhang, male, 47 years old, the people of Shanghai; retrospective diagnosis of five cases of human infection of H7N9 avian influenza confirmed cases, three of whom recovered, and two people died. As of 17:00 today, a total of 30 confirmed cases, including 11 deaths, 15 cases being treated in isolation, four patients have been discharged.http://news.ifeng.com/mainland/special/h7n9/content-3/detail_2013_04/16/24286924_0.shtml

H7N9 virus found in wild pigeons in China, 8 more people infected

SHANGHAI, April 16, Kyodo

Chinese health authorities said Tuesday the H7N9 strain of bird flu has sickened eight more people in the eastern provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang and the virus has been found in wild pigeons captured in the Jiangsu capital of Nanjing.

The Ministry of Agriculture said this is the first time the H7N9 virus has been found in wild birds.

Local health officials said three more people have been infected by H7N9 in Jiangsu and five in Zhejiang, raising the total number of cases to 72, all in northern and eastern China. Fourteen people have died from the disease.  http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2013/04/219973.html

Experts predict a new pandemic bird flu

Published: April 16, 2013 | 12:14 GMT

Corbis

The new avian flu virus, H7N9, could pose a greater threat than its predecessor, H5N1, since it is able to adapt to transmit among humans. Hence the pandemic threat that worries experts.

The microbiologist at the University of Hong Kong, Ho Pak-leung, became the foremost expert on publicly express the fears of a pandemic, says the newspaper "South China Morning Post. It reminds us that the H7N9 virus emerged last March and has already infected more people than the H5N1 virus in the last 10 years (63 to 45 infected with H7N9  victims of H5N1  in China).

 The H5N1 never affected many provinces at the same time " 

Ho is concerned about the latest news from Beijing, where they discovered the virus in a four year old despite not showing  any symptoms  of flu. It is a "red flag" for a pandemic, said the expert. The patient is under medical observation at the hospital after coming in contact with the  first infected  in Beijing, a seven year old. Doctors have managed to save his life.  The H7N9 that is also recorded in the provinces of Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Henan and Anhui, and Shanghai, where  applicable , has already claimed the lives of 14 people. "The H5N1 never affected many provinces at the same time," said Ho. 


Texto completo en: http://actualidad.rt.com/actualidad/view/91944-pandemia-gripe-china-virus-ho?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=actualidad

Pheasant was the H5N1 virus 'attack'

A- A A + 

Dam Xuan Thanh, in addition to the H5N1 bird flu outbreak also occurred in more than 4,000 birds nest in Ninh Thuan province, also has 177 quail farming in Tien Giang, the H5N1 virus has been "attacked"

16.4, in the National Steering Committee meeting avian flu and foot and mouth disease, Tan Xuan Thanh, deputy director of the Department of Animal Health (MARD) said that from the beginning of the year, the country recorded the outbreak of influenza A (H5N1) in 15 communes in four provinces of la Dien Bien Khanh Hoa, Kien Giang, Tay Ninh than 28,000 poultry disease, death and destruction.

In addition, the H5N1 bird flu outbreak also occurred in more than 4,000 birds nest in the province of Ninh Thuan. In particular, he says, 177 quail farming in Tien Giang, the H5N1 virus has been "attacked".

According to the latest warning of the Department of Animal Health, formerly testing wild birds in Korea and Mongolia, authorities discovered influenza A virus (H7N9).

Wild birds carry disease but not death. however, migration or spread may change, causes serious illness, high mortality risk.

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Macau news: the collective of the six children of the nursery stained influenza

Macau Health Bureau said Lin Maohai side street of the Women's Federation nursery a total of six young children, fever, cough, runny nose and other flu-like symptoms, all patients to the medical institution for treatment, now in stable condition, without hospitalization. http://news.on.cc/cnt/news/20130416/bkn-20130416203811404-0416_00822_001.html

Child has H1N1, PARENTS DON'T

  

Hebei Handan children transferred suffering from the H7N9 avian flu officially confirmed as a stream

Time :2013 -04-16 20:17:53

BEIJING, Handan, April 16 (the Macartney former ZHAO Chen-guang) Recently, the network transmission Hebei Handan a young children suffering from H7N9 avian flu, Handan City Bureau of Health, and their parents 16 average daily clarification, young children are suffering from Influenza A (H1N1) not of human infection with the H7N9 avian influenza, Handan City is not found in the H7N9 avian influenza.

    Handan City Bureau of Health informed that, the 14th, 2011 microblogging said that the small nephew Zeze infected with the H1N1 flu in urgent need of help, Handan Center Hospital. Subsequently, the microblogging users to forward quickly in a short period of time twenty thousand several users to illness and people infected with the H7N9 avian influenza confusion, caused some panic in the forwarding process.

    According to small Zeze's father, Mr. Yang said, the small Zeze am one year and seven months, living in Shenzhen, recently home to visit relatives on the 10th for children who show difficulty breathing, coma situation, hastily sent Guantao County The People's Hospital for treatment, to fight anti-inflammatory needles, but could not see his condition improved. In the afternoon of the 11th, the small Zeze be sent to Handan Central Hospital, his condition has very serious.

    The Handan Municipal Health Bureau informed that the hospital immediately set up a team of experts for consultation, and collected specimens sent to the disease control department of Handan City staff overnight cases specimens were detected in at 0:30 on the 12th, Zeze been diagnosed with influenza A (H1N1), separated by hand care treatment. Subsequently, the cases detected after H7N9 ultimately exclude human infection with the H7N9 avian influenza. Although (H1N1) influenza interpersonal communication, parents of children infected with influenza A (H1N1) was not found.

    Handan Central Hospital pediatric director of Prescription BEIJING reporters a telephone interview, said that small Zeze life state mainly by oxygen and drugs to maintain the body without the body temperature, pupil does not respond, slim hope of cure. "(End) http://news.cnwest.com/content/2013-04/16/content_8979225.htm

Taiwan to ban killing of live poultry in markets

Taiwan is planning a permanent ban on the killing of live poultry in traditional markets amid concerns over the spread of the H7N9 avian flu virus in China, an official said on Tuesday.

TAIPEI - Taiwan is planning a permanent ban on the killing of live poultry in traditional markets amid concerns over the spread of the H7N9 avian flu virus in China, an official said on Tuesday.

The new rule will come into effect on June 17, as an agricultural law requires a grace period for relevant preparation, according to Huang Kwo-ching, a spokesman for the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine.

However, he said the ban would be implemented immediately if a human case of the H7N9 bird flu were reported in Taiwan.

Market vendors will still be allowed to sell poultry supplied from the island's 79 licensed slaughter houses after the new rule comes into effect, he added.

Sixty-three people in China are known to have been infected with the bird flu strain, which has killed 14 of its victims.

Travel between Taiwan and China, which is separated by a narrow strait, is frequent and Taipei has stepped up temperature checks at airports on passenger arrivals from several Chinese cities where infections have been reported.

Last week Taiwanese authorities destroyed more than 100 birds smuggled from the mainland and seized by the coastguard in a fishing port in northern Taiwan. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/taiwan-to-ban-killing-of-live-poultry-in/640392.html

238 pigs and 89 dogs up and drop dead in Luoyang village

By Katie Nelson

Dead animals, so hot right now. 289 pigs and 89 dogs have joined the cavalcade mysterious Chinese animal deaths. The animals' bodies were found in Luoyang's Dongtun village on Monday, after reportedly dying suddenly and all at once for reasons not yet confirmed.

While tests have ruled out the H7N9 virus as a cause, officials are still unsure as to what triggered the mass deaths. Local residents believe that it may have resulted from poisonous gases emitted from a nearby chemical plant.

"Usually there's a smell," one local said, "today it was especially bad, really big."

"Overnight, all the dogs in the village have basically died off," another resident said. "Those that hadn't died were in their last gasps."

In the past couple of months, 250 kilos of fish, over 1,000 ducks, and, of course, some 15,000 pigs have died in China due to pollution undetermined causes. http://shanghaiist.com/2013/04/16/238_pigs_89_dogs_die_in_chinese_village.php

Dead chicken are seen at a poultry farm in the outskirts of Shanghai

Dead chickens are seen at a poultry farm on the outskirts of Shanghai April 16, 2013. The owner of the farm said the chickens died of causes unrelated to the H7N9 virus. China's poultry sector has recorded losses of more than 10 billion yuan ($1.6 billion) since reports emerged two weeks ago of the H7N9 virus, a new strain of bird flu, an official at the country's National Poultry Industry Association told Reuters on Tuesday. REUTERS/Aly Song 

4-year-old boy's case suggests virus immunity

Updated: 2013-04-16 02:15

Health workers obtain samples from pigeons at a village in Cuigezhuang township, Chaoyang district,Beijing, on Monday. A 4-year-old boy from the village was found to have the H7N9 virus. Hou Yu / China News Service

A 4-year-old boy in Beijing confirmed as an H7N9 flu virus carrier who has not yet shown symptoms may be an indication that some people are immune to the disease, a health official has said.

The Beijing Municipal Health Bureau said in a statement on Monday that the boy, surnamed Zhu, tested positive for the H7N9 flu virus at the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency suspected his case might have been caused by chicken that was resold by the family of a 7-year-old girl who became Beijing's first H7N9 case on Saturday.

Fight against the H7N9bird flu

The boy, who is being monitored at Beijing Ditan Hospital, has not shown any symptoms of the virus, a possible indicator of immunity, said Zhong Dongbo, deputy chief of the municipal health bureau.

"If we can find a large number of carriers of the virus who show no symptoms, that means an immunity barrier could exist among human beings and the virus could disappear eventually," Zhong told a news conference.

Because many cases of infection in East China have been severe, the diagnosis of the boy who has shown no symptoms indicates that the H7N9 virus can also lead to mild or even no symptoms. Confirmation of the boy as a virus carrier also further corroborated the source of the infection as poultry, he said.

Local health authorities traced the boy's case to the village he lives in. The father of the first person infected in Beijing, the 7-year-old girl, sold poultry to villagers. Authorities took throat swabs from 24 people with a high risk of getting the virus, and the city's CDC found the virus in the boy's specimen.

A family that lives across the street from the boy's house bought chicken from the father of the 7-year-old girl, but health authorities failed to find the cause of the 4-year-old's infection because the chicken had already been eaten, he added.

Despite the health bureau's report, Jiang Rongmeng, chief physician at the Infection Center of Ditan Hospital, believes it is premature to call the boy a virus carrier.

"When people infected have a strong immunity, they will naturally recover. The other possibility is an apparent infection like hepatitis B," he said. "We need to further observe this flu virus to see how it will develop inside humans."

The boy's case was discovered as disease control and prevention authorities in Chaoyang district stepped up efforts to monitor a group of high risk from the H7N9 virus, which is mainly poultry industry workers.

As in the girl's case, the parents of the boy trade poultry in Naidong village, Cuigezhuang township in Chaoyang district.

The boy's parents and his elder sister are also under medical observation at hospitals, and the other people who were given tests were under watch in the village. http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2013-04/16/content_16409162.htm

E627K In First Confirmed Hangzhou Case

Recombinomics Commentary 19:00
April 15, 2013

The Hangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention has now released a full set of sequences from the first case (38M) in Hangzhou, A/Hangzhou/1/2013.  Sequences from H7, N9, and MP were released earlier at GISAID, and are now also available at Genbank.  The release of the remaining five genes was completed this weekend.  As noted previously, the H7 has L226I, which represents further evolution ofQ226L, which was seen in two of the three earlier cases, as well as all three avian sequences.  The three prior human PB2 sequences had E627K, which was not present in any of the three avian sequences.  The PB2 from A/Hangzhou/1/2013 also has E627K.
Thus, the appearance of E627K in all four human cases and none of the three avian sequences raises concerns that this human adapted version is circulating in humans and is producing a wide spectrum of clinical presentations.  However, since all of the human H7N9 sequences are from fatal cases, it is possible that milder cases such as the asymptomatic case in Beijing lack E627K.  However, E627K leads to elevated viral loads in the upper respiratory tract, which was the sample source for A/Hangzhou/1/2013 as well as the asymptomatic case, suggesting that E627K will be in all or most human cases.
If the Beijing sequences match those of the fatal cases in and around Shanghai, then the WHO claims of no sustained transmission would have little support because testing of mild or asymptomatic case contacts has been limited.  Media reports note that much of the contact tracing is via phone interviews which would miss asymptomatic cases and would likely also miss mild cases.
The number of H7N9 confirmed cases is now 64 and 14 of the 15 outcomes have been fatal (case fatality rate of 93%).  This high rate highlights the testing limitations and heavy bias for severe hospitalized cases.  Expanded surveillance is urgently require, which involves actual testing of contacts.  The large number of cases over a wide area and the absence of poultry contact in most cases suggests the H7N9 is currently transmitting human to human in a sustained manner.

AVIAN INFLUENZA, HUMAN (46): CHINA (H7N9) STEALTH VIRUS

A ProMED-mail post
http://www.promedmail.org
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
http://www.isid.org

Date: Sun 14 Apr 2013
From: Anne DeGroot [edited]


Scientists at EpiVax performed an extremely rapid bioinformatics analysis on the genome sequences of H7N9 influenza and predict that it will be difficult to make effective vaccines and low cost diagnostics for the newly emerging virus (also called H7N9/A/Shanghai/1/2013), meaning that the new H7N9 may be a "stealth" virus that is able to fly under the immune system's radar. And, they predict, should the H7N9 "stealth virus" adapt itself for human-to-human transmission, it has serious potential for rapid expansion on a global scale.

What makes the new flu invisible to the immune system? The protein that is usually incorporated in vaccines known as HA (hemagglutinin) has fewer immune-stimulating "T cell epitopes" than many previously circulating strains of flu (see image at http://www.epivax.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/H7N9_Immunogenicity_EpIVax_12Apr13_AGM1.jpg).

The analysis done by the EpiVax team of expert vaccine designers is consistent with reports that previous H7 vaccines also had low immunogenicity. Last season's [2011-2012] H3N2 was also predicted by EpiVax to be low immunogenicity, and epidemiological evidence of outbreaks among H3N2-vaccinated individuals confirms the prediction. Unless it is engineered for higher immunogenicity, a vaccine against H7N2 may have similar low efficacy as was seen with H3N2.

Low T cell epitope content generally means that it is harder to make high-affinity antibodies, the type that protect against flu and that are used to make low-cost diagnostic tests like ELISAs. While one rapid test for flu (based on PCR) is available, lacking a low cost rapid test, it could be harder to screen the expanding numbers of individuals that have already been exposed to active H7N9 cases. More than 1000 such cases are being "followed" by Chinese health authorities.

The EpiVax scientists did a similar analysis of pandemic H1N1 in 2009 [1] and correctly predicted that pandemic H1N1 would not cause severe disease in most individuals, a prediction that was subsequently validated in vitro and in vivo by many others. Unfortunately, the immunogenicity news is not so good for H7N9.

Detailed information with references/publications can be found athttp://bit.ly/H7N9EpiVax.


[1] Previous publication demonstrating cross-conservation between seasonal influenza and H1N1 published during 2009 pandemic: De Groot AS, Ardito M, McClaine EM, Moise L, Martin WD. Vaccine. 2009 Sep 25; 27(42):5740-7. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2009.07.040. Epub 2009 Aug 4. Immunoinformatic comparison of T-cell epitopes contained in novel swine-origin influenza A (H1N1) virus with epitopes in 2008-2009 conventional influenza vaccine.

--
Anne S. De Groot, MD
Professor and Director, Institute for Immunology and Informatics
University of Rhode Island
and
CEO/CSO EpiVax
http://www.EpiVax.com


[ProMED-mail thanks Professor De Groot for making the EpiVax bioinformatics analysis of the genome sequence available for our readers. 

The conclusions of the analysis are in line with previous predictions that the path to development of an effective vaccine may be slow and problematic. Fortunately, hemagglutinin inhibitors are treatment options in the interim. The EpiVax interpretation that the avian H7N9 influenza virus has the properties of a "stealth virus" is novel and in line with current knowledge of the behaviour of the virus. - Mod.CP

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker in China

Walker unconcerned amid bird flu outbreak in China

April 15, 2013, 11:57 am

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Scott Walker is dismissing concerns about the latest bird flu outbreak in China, where is currently leading a trade mission.

Walker said Monday concerns over bird flu will not cause him to change any of his travel plans in the country or lead to him cancel the trip early.

A rare type of bird flu has been sweeping through eastern China in recent weeks. There were 63 confirmed cases and 14 deaths as of Monday.

Walker arrived in China Friday for a 10-day trade mission with government and business leaders.

Walker says the delegation took precautions before departing and Chinese health officials have been helping.

Wisconsin health officials are warning anyone traveling to China to be examined if they show symptoms of the flu upon their return. http://www.necn.com/04/15/13/Walker-unconcerned-amid-bird-flu-outbrea/landing_nation.html?&apID=c6503f57b6f24607afdaa1e4a1caa523

Taiwan's new nine cases of H7N9 avian influenza suspected cases were not excluded

Add a comment www.fjsen.com 2013-04-15 23:01

China Taiwan, April 15, according to Taiwan media reports, Taiwan's new suspected cases, an increase of 9 cases of H7N9 avian flu, including four cases have not ruled out the possibility of infection. Taiwan, many experts have warned, H7N9 viruses have emerged variation, the virus is likely human-to-human transmission.

H7N9 virus seems that now is not just hidden in the body of the chicken, may also be hidden in the human upper respiratory tract. Although the World Health Organization foreign said there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission, but infectious disease experts in Taiwan have come out a warning, the H7N9 virus has become increasingly powerful fear of increased human-human transmission.

Taiwan authorities, "the CDC" H7N9 virus infectivity is relatively weak, plus Sun, Hualien free exercise of mainland tourists fever event already warned us that H7N9 virus incubation Already infectious. From the plane ride transport stayed in hotels, tourist attractions in contact with people may be contagious H7N9 virus. http://www.fjsen.com/b/2013-04/15/content_11139393.htm

World's in 'new territory' with challenging new flu virus, WHO expert says

 

U.S. World Health Organization Assistant Director Keiji Fukuda is shown at a conference on swine flu in Cancun, Mexico in this July 3, 2009 photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Miguel Tovar

 

 

TORONTO - There has been bird flu. And swine flu. But the world is on new flu ground when it comes to the H7N9 virus that recently erupted in China, the World Health Organization's senior flu expert said Friday.
The virus has sickened at least 43 people in eastern China. Most of the infections have involved severe illness and 11 of the cases have died.
And late Friday — Saturday in China — health authorities in Beijing revealed the capital has recorded its first H7N9 case, in a seven year old girl whose parents are in the live poultry trade. That marks a big and worrisome geographic jump for a virus which till now had only been seen in three provinces around Shanghai.
People are getting sick, but for the most part it's not apparent how they were infected. That's because in poultry the virus is of low pathogenicity — "low path" in the vernacular of flu. It is not currently causing evident disease in birds, making it the viral equivalent of a stealth bomber.
Though its genetic blueprint makes clear it is a bird flu virus, H7N9 carries a number of mutations that indicate it is partially adapted to infecting mammals — which may help explain the rapidly accumulating human cases.
To date it doesn't appear as if the virus is spreading person to person, which is perhaps the best feature of this virus. But two weeks after China announced it had found people infected with a new flu, concern among those in the influenza research world remains high.
"I think we are genuinely in new territory here in which the situation of having something that is low path in birds (yet) appears to be so pathogenic in people," Dr. Keiji Fukuda, the WHO's assistant director-general for health security and environment, said in an interview.
"And then to have those genetic changes ... I simply don't know what that combination is going to lead to."
The situation is quintessential flu. The eight-gene RNA viruses are notorious for throwing knuckle balls, catching even those who study them for years off guard.
"Almost everything you can imagine is possible. And then what's likely to happen are the things which you can't imagine," Fukuda, who spent years as an influenza epidemiologist at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control before joining the WHO, said of the virus he has studied for so long.
At this point, few in the flu world would place strong bets on what the history books will say about this outbreak. So in the face of the uncertainty, the WHO is laying the groundwork for action, if action is needed.
As of Thursday, all the laboratories in the WHO's flu network have received copies of the H7N9 virus — a development that allows them to dive into research on the virus. Fukuda praised Chinese authorities for sharing the virus so quickly and broadly.
One of the recipients, the CDC, said Friday it will use the virus to develop a seed strain for an H7N9 vaccine, evaluate whether diagnostic tests that have been developed actually detect the virus, confirm whether the viruses are susceptible to the two main flu drugs, oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza), and try to develop a blood test that could detect H7N9 antibodies in people who have been infected.
That test would also help laboratories figure out if infections with other flu viruses might give people some cross-protection against this new one.
Fukuda said the WHO has been reaching out to doctors in China, sharing information about treating severe influenza infections. Some of that knowledge derives from nearly a decade of sporadic human cases of H5N1 bird flu, which like H7N9 can cause severe disease. And some of the knowledge was garnered during the 2003 SARS outbreak.
One piece of guidance the agency is trying to share involves discouraging the use of high-dose corticosteroids. The powerful drugs were used in some countries during SARS, and were tried with some H5N1 cases. Not only did the drugs not help, but they were also counterproductive.
Fukuda said the WHO is also working on "what ifs" at this point, figuring out what needs to be in place if an H7N9 vaccine is needed, if the WHO has to send antiviral drugs to help with the response, or if it needs to heighten the warnings it is giving to the world about H7N9's pandemic potential.
"There are still a lot of fundamental questions open, but when you put it all together, this is a quite serious signal for us," Fukuda said. "And there's nothing which has lessened the seriousness of that signal over the last few weeks."

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Worlds+territory+with+challenging+virus+expert+says/8236633/story.html?#ixzz2QXoYwG9A

Saipan-NMI heightens readiness vs new flu virus

Monday, April 15, 2013

By Moneth Deposa
Reporter

Gov. Eloy S. Inos has inked a partnership with the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. and other agencies to ratchet up the CNMI's readiness against a novel avian influenza A virus called H7N9, which already has confirmed cases in China.

Public health officials in China have reported 44 cases of human infection with the H7N9 flu to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization. Most cases were hospitalized with severe respiratory illness and 11 persons have died since the last report on Saturday.

Although there are no cases of H7N9 flu in the CNMI, CHCC epidemiologist Edward Diaz said that the corporation is heightening its readiness to detect and respond to any flu outbreak.

He encourages the public to be proactive by practicing the Flu W.A.T.C.H. steps, especially practicing basic hygiene measures like proper and frequent hand washing, avoiding close contact with people who are sick, and staying home from work or school when ill.

Last Thursday, CHCC officials met with Inos and the CNMI Pandemic Flu Committee-made up of various governmental, private, and non-profit organizations-to provide guidance on the H7N9 situation and to review the existing CNMI Pandemic Flu Plan in order to be prepared for this evolving situation. On Friday, a meeting took place with the Airport Operations Committee members.

The CHCC is responsible for updating the CNMI Pandemic Flu Response Plan annually and is now putting it to the test. Increasing surveillance, alerting all medical providers, promoting flu prevention, and working with the entire community are all part of the plan. The CHCC also receives frequent updates from CDC and WHO and is working with local public and private agencies to monitor the situation.

CHCC will issue an advisory for medical providers detailing the case definition and mitigation steps that should be taken in screening and treating suspected H7N9 flu patients that come to their respective clinics.

To date, there are no cases of human infection with H7N9 detected in the CNMI, the United States, or any place other than China.

The corporation emphasized that there is no human-to-human transmission of H7N9 flu and that this flu is only occurring in China at this time.

“The global concern is that the H7N9 flu outbreak could become a pandemic, or an infection that spreads across a large region or worldwide. A pandemic usually occurs every 30 to 40 years and there has not been a deadly flu pandemic in more than 40 years,” a statement from the administration states.

Furthermore, the concern with the H7N9 flu virus is that it is a completely new flu virus and people don't have antibodies or resistance to fight it. There is presently no vaccine for the H7N9 virus, although antiviral medication is available in the CNMI to help treat it.

Based on the current situation, and that there are no human-to-human spread of this new flu, the risk of having an outbreak in the CNMI is very low. However, the government is monitoring the situation very closely in case the threat level escalates.

Inos thanked the CHCC and the CNMI Pandemic Flu Committee for closely monitoring developments in this case.

“We had a very good meeting. I was initially concerned that in the wake of all the media coverage on North Korea, we might find ourselves unprepared to address the threat of the H7N9 virus that is spreading in parts of China. But, this is not the case, we can assure our people that we have our resources pooled to ensure that we keep a close eye on both matters that are of deep concern to the public,” assured the governor.

CHCC said the best protection right now is to practice precautionary flu W.A.T.C.H. and to get vaccinated with the seasonal flu vaccine. Vaccines are available at all private clinics and at the CHC Immunization Clinic, it is free and no appointment is needed. http://www.saipantribune.com/newsstory.aspx?cat=1&newsID=126679

Ninh Thuan: Birds nest continue to die irregularities

(AP) - On 15/4, there are still a lot of dead birds nest scattered around the theater Thanh Binh, oat breeding base of Yen Viet Joint Stock Company Quarter 2, Ward Long Island city Phan Rang - Thap Cham. 

 
Dead bird nest still scattered around the theater Peace 

Earlier, nearly 5,000 pet birds nest at the base Thanh Binh killed and dead bird nest samples were positive with the H5N1 avian influenza virus.

Talking to us, Veterinary Department representative Ninh Thuan Province said, these days the authorities have disinfectant spray, increase fan, spray water for the Peace oat breeding so the number of dead birds fell than before.

However, the record of PV AP, in localities Tao Long (around regional theaters Thanh Binh) status swallow swooping on houses and die, or   die and fall to the canvas in the alley, on the roof People are still scattered.Some residents living near the area said: when see dead birds nest and falling home then collected, gasoline for destruction.

 

A people ward Religion Long dead bird nest is collected and used gasoline to burn

Region VI representative Veterinary Center in Ho Chi Minh City said is cooperating with authorities Ninh Thuan province sampled birds nest at 18/54   basis to test for H5N1 testing. Until day 16/4 published results. http://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/ninh-thuan-chim-yen-tiep-tuc-chet-bat-thuong-719769.htm