H5N1, Bird Flu Updates - Page 15

The head the city’s Agriculture, Maritime and Animal Husbandry Agency, Jawilhija, said recent screenings of poultry samples in the city showed that 70 percent tested positive to bird flu.

“Seventy percent of samples taken from the faeces of thousands of birds were avian flu positive, even though the birds appeared healthy,” she told The Jakarta Post.

“We have to be aware that avian flu is still in the city. Bird owners should not let their pets roam about in the neighborhood and should have them certificated,” Jawilhija said.

The administration has issued a poultry restriction bylaw that regulates poultry distribution in the city.

The bylaw includes the requirement of certificates for pet bird owners and the localization of poultry slaughterhouses to six areas on Jakarta’s periphery.

The bylaw, however, has yet to be implemented due to widespread public criticism of the plan earlier this year.

One pet bird owner, Rudi Pelung, 42, a resident of Pondok Bambu in East Jakarta, said all his birds, mostly chickens, had been certificated as avian flu-free.

“It is a part of my responsibility as a bird enthusiast. I have to worry about my pets,” said Rudi, who owns 25 birds.

He said to get a certificate, officers from the agency would come and check the facilities provided for the birds, the birds themselves and whether they had been vaccinated.

As part of avian flu prevention, Rudi said kept as few birds as possible so they are easy to monitor.

“I make sure their cages are clean and they have proper ventilation and enough sunshine. The chickens should be treated regularly also,” he said.

For birds smaller than 1 kilogram, however, vaccination is not recommended because it is ineffective.

Hasan Helmi, who owns 60 pigeons, said he tried to prevent his pets from avian flu by regularly feeding them vitamins and medication.

Pigs have long been suspected as being ideal `mixing vessels’ for influenza because they are believed susceptible to a wide variety of human, swine, and avian flu viruses.

Swine possess both avian-like (SAα2,3Gal) and human-like (SAα2,6Gal) receptor cells in their respiratory tract, which scientists believe can facilitate a `bridging’ between avian and human strains.

The recent emergence of the 2009 H1N1 virus, after reassorting and bouncing around in pigs for years, has helped reinforce that theory.

But whether the H5N1 bird flu strain can readily adapt to, infect, and transmit among pigs has been an open question.

Indonesian authorities say three provincial regions have been affected by bird flu and thousands of chickens and ducks have been culled to prevent its spread.

Local officials have also carried out disinfectant spraying in three areas of Bengkulu Province after a 14-year-old junior high school girl's death was confirmed as being caused by the H5N1 avian influenza virus, Indonesia's Antara news service reported Thursday.

Bird flu virus has spread to at least 30 urban neighborhoods in Bengkulu city, he said.

Ducks and other aquatic birds are a major reservoir of the H5N1 virus, with some species capable of carrying the pathogen without ill effect. H5N1 is generally a gastrointestinal malady in birds, and the belief is that the virus is usually spread via infected feces.

In 2006, however, we became aware of a cluster of human H5N1 infections (7 cases, 4 fatalities) in Azerbaijan which were ultimately linked to the harvesting of feathers from dead swans.


And more recently, in June of this year, we saw a study (see Birds Of A Feather . . . .) in PLoS One, suggesting that waterfowl may be acquiring and spreading avian flu viruses because their preening oils bind the virus to their feathers.

...the H5N1 virus may persist on the dropped feathers from infected ducks and that they may spread the virus to the environment.

Avian flu, particularly H5N1, has our attention because unlike regular influenza, it has a very high mortality rate. Among those we know to have been infected, roughly 60% have died.

A rate well over 100 times higher than with regular flu.

Apoptosis is programmed cellular death, while Scribble is a protein the body’s immune system uses to promote the early death (apoptosis) of virally infected cells.

In this way, the immune system can help limit viral replication while it develops defenses (antibodies, cytokines, etc.) against the invader.

In the case of H5N1, the virus’s PDZ binding-motif works to deactivates the host’s apoptosis defense mechanism, giving the virus a decided advantage.

the patient, a female resident of the qalyubiya governorate, is currently receiving treatment at a cairo hospital.
according to a ministry statement, her symptoms include high fever and breathing difficulties. she contracted the illness after coming into contact with poultry suspected of having been infected with the virus, the statement noted, adding that she remained in critical condition despite having been treated with the anti-viral drug tamiflu on arrival to the hospital.

the last time an egyptian succumbed to the h5n1 virus was in april. that case brought the total number of bird flu fatalities in egypt to 34.

One of the (many) unanswered questions about H5N1 avian flu is why it doesn’t more easily infect humans and why is human-to-human transmission so rare?

We think we know part of the reason:

Avian adapted influenza viruses bind preferentially to Alpha 2,3 receptor cells, which are commonly found in the digestive tract of birds. This explains why most avian flu viruses are gastrointestinal infections in birds.

Human adapted viruses have an affinity for the alpha 2,6 receptor cell, which populate the upper airway and lungs. This is why influenza is a respiratory virus in humans.

But of course, we’ve got at least 500 exceptions to the rule. H5N1 does, on rare occasion, find a home in a human host.

Getting bird flu news out of Indonesia can be particularly difficult since the Health Ministry decided several years ago that constantly talking about their H5N1 problem was bad for the country’s image (see Indonesia To Stop Announcing Bird Flu Deaths).

Today Ida has two stories.

First, the suspected Bird Flu infection of a young girl in West Kalimantan, which if you will recall, was the location of a suspected bird flu fatality in July...

A second report details steps that are being taken in Luwu Timur, South Sulawesi to try to combat an outbreak of H5N1 in domestic birds, where thousands of birds have recently died.

In response, the Health Service has formed a special avian influenza treatment unit in anticipation of possible human cases.

This story also suggests that standard control measures in Luwu Timur, such as the spraying of disinfectant, have failed to control the outbreak.

Pigeons, however - which are of the same bird family (Columbidae) - have gotten somewhat more attention over the past few years, partially because they (and their feces) are so ubiquitous in many population centers.

Around the world, opinions vary over the threat these city dwellers present. In Bangladesh pigeons, along with ducks and chickens, are routinely culled in their fight against bird flu.

The good news is, since we haven't seen more than a few pigeon or dove related bird flu stories over the years, the evidence is scant that they pose much of a health threat to humans.

Of course, the H5N1 virus is constantly changing and evolving, and so that assessment could change in the future.

machinetranslated

Unknown virus in Krasnoyarsk lake killed 500 birds

KRASNOYARSK, September 20. On the shore of Lake Tagar in the Krasnoyarsk Territory ornithologists found dead migratory birds.

Among the dead birds - ducks (mallard, Cherokee, shelohvost) and crows. According EMERCOM Russia in Krasnoyarsk region, only found about 500 animals.

In connection with the emergency on the lake and 100-meter zone of sanitary quarantine. 2 posts were put up DPS and get information boards. Moreover, in Minusinsk District banned the hunting passes Ngs.ru

Causes of death of the birds are being investigated. Presumably, the death of the birds could occur as a result of acute viral disease. In this regard, there are already several reports on the return of bird flu.

http://www.rosbalt.ru/2010/09/20/773...B0%D0%BB%D1%82)