WHO confirms five deaths from China bird flu

Many cases of the new strain have been found in Shanghai
BBC 5 Apr 13;

The World Health Organization says there have now been five deaths in China from a new bird flu virus.

There have been 11 laboratory-confirmed cases of the H7N9 virus, a form of avian flu which had not been seen before in humans.

But the WHO says there is currently no evidence of human-to-human transmission of the virus.

Tests suggest that the virus could be treated with the anti-influenza drugs Tamiflu and Relenza.

Around 400 people who have been in close contact with the 11 cases are being monitored.

'Heightened surveillance'

The Chinese government has stepped up its disease surveillance and is retrospectively testing any recently reported cases of severe respiratory infection, to check if any cases had not been recognised as H7N9.

An inter-government task force has been formally established, and the animal health sector has intensified investigations into the possible sources of the virus.

China's government has also advised people to maintain good personal hygiene, including frequent hand-washing and avoid direct contact with sick or dead animals.

The WHO is not recommending any travel or trade restrictions.

China reports fifth H7N9 bird flu death
(AFP) Google News 5 Apr 1`3;

BEIJING — A new strain of bird flu has claimed two more lives in China's business capital of Shanghai, taking the total number of human deaths attributed to the H7N9 virus to five, state media said Thursday.

Four of the deaths have occurred in the commercial hub, while the other was reported in the neighbouring province of Zhejiang on Wednesday.

Chinese authorities are trying to determine how exactly the new variety of bird flu infects people, but say there is no evidence yet of human-to-human transmission.

The total number of confirmed cases now stands at 14, including six from Shanghai, according to the official Xinhua news agency which cited health authorities.

The first two deaths occurred in February but were not reported by authorities until late March. Officials said the delay in announcing the results was because it took time to determine the cause of the illnesses.

A 48-year-old poultry transporter was among the latest two reported dead Thursday while the identity of the other person was not released. Both were said to have died a day earlier.

Authorities said none of the eight people whom the 48-year-old had close contact with had shown signs of infection.

The World Health Organisation on Wednesday ruled out the possibility of a pandemic because the sub-type is not thought to be transmitted from human to human, unlike the more common H5N1 strain.

But health experts have emphasised the need to quickly identify the source of the virus and its mode of transmission to reduce human exposure.

China's Ministry of Agriculture said Thursday the virus has been detected in pigeon samples collected at a marketplace in Shanghai, according to a Xinhua report, which did not define the nature of the samples.

After gene sequence analysis, the national avian flu reference laboratory found the strain of the virus in pigeons to be "highly congenetic with those found on persons infected with H7N9 virus".

The more common strain of bird flu, H5N1, killed more than 360 people globally from 2003 until March 12 this year, according to the WHO.

In another development, a man in the central province of Hunan died from H1N1 (swine) flu on Wednesday, Xinhua reported.

A 2009-2010 swine flu pandemic resulted in over 18,000 deaths worldwide, according to WHO estimates. But the strain, while highly contagious, is not thought to be more lethal than ordinary flu.

U.S. says following new bird flu closely, preparing vaccine
Julie Steenhuysen Reuters 4 Apr 13;

(Reuters) - The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Thursday it was monitoring a new strain of bird flu and has started work on a vaccine just in case it is needed.

So far, the strain known as avian influenza A (H7N9) has only been found in China and does not appear to be capable of being passed from person to person.


The strain has killed five people, and global health officials are discussing if and when it may be necessary to start producing a vaccine.

The infections in China mark the first time humans have been afflicted by this new strain of bird flu, which causes severe respiratory illness.

CDC spokesman Tom Skinner said the agency is monitoring the situation closely and working with its domestic and international partners.

The CDC has begun reviewing genetic sequence information on the strain and started the process of making a "seed" virus, a genetically modified version of the virus that could be used by manufacturers to make a vaccine. Because the agency is using artificial or synthetic DNA for this step, Skinner said the seed virus may be available within the next few weeks.

Then, several weeks of testing the seed virus in ferrets would be required to determine if it can be used to make a vaccine. If the answer is yes, then ramping up production would take several months. All told, said Skinner, production of a vaccine against the new strain - should one be needed - would not be underway for five to six months.

Before full-scale production of a vaccine begins, however, there are several questions that must be addressed, especially whether the virus is being transmitted from person to person.

"Right now there is no evidence to suggest that is the case," Skinner said in a telephone interview.

CDC labs will also be conducting tests to see if the virus is susceptible to current antiviral drugs used to treat flu, such as Roche Holding AG's Tamiflu, he said.

However, Skinner stressed that the steps the CDC is taking are routine preparedness measures that often apply when a new flu virus is detected in people.

Most conventional flu vaccines in the United States are still made using a 60-year-old process in which the vaccine is grown in fertilized chicken eggs. That method can take several months to complete, but it is changing.

In November, Novartis won U.S. regulatory approval to sell its cell-based flu vaccine, which uses a speedier manufacturing process.

In January, privately held Protein Sciences Corp won U.S. approval to develop the first gene-based flu vaccine, which uses genetic engineering to grow portions of the virus in insect cells rather than eggs.

Other U.S. flu vaccine makers include Sanofi SA, AstraZeneca Plc and GlaxoSmithKline.

(Additional reporting by Sharon Begley in New York; Editing by Xavier Briand, Christopher Wilson and Eric Beech)