NightBlogger

Although there are public H5N1 sequences from Purwakarta, the public sequences are from 2004 and are clade 2.1, which is the clade found throughout Indonesia (see phylogram). The number of public 2007 sequences from Indonesia is limited, and there are no public 2008 sequences, so the relationship between the strain described in the local media, and recent isolates cannot be independently confirmed. More

Photo Tommy Mac
AVIAN Influenza, another name for bird flu is fundamentally a disease of birds caused by a variety of strains of influenza viruses that have adapted to a specific host, particularly in water fowl. The H5N1 strain of influenza - often referred to as bird flu - is first known to have jumped from chickens to humans in 1997. Since 2004 it has ripped through poultry and wild bird populations across Eurasia, and had a 53% mortality rate in the first 147 people it is known to have infected.

Health authorities fear this strain, or its descendent, could cause a lethal new flu pandemic in people with the potential to kill billions after the virus responsible for causing the disease jumped the specie-barrier to infect humans. Experts fear the nature of the disease could be more lethal than ten hydrogen bombs after causing a pandemic. Of the 382 human cases reported so far the world over, 241 have been devoured by the deadly disease. More

Photo Tommy Mack

ABC News
“The World Health Organisation (WHO) says it is not surprised by recent reports out of China that the bird flu has been transmitted between people. The illness has killed more than 240 people worldwide, although most cases were caught from poultry. There have now been a handful of confirmed cases of human-to-human transmission. The WHO’s Dr Ian Barr has told a Canberra conference the virus is currently not considered risky for humans, [then why the warning] but it should be monitored in case it mutates into a more virulent form.

“It’s a very widespread virus currently and it’s quite a nasty virus,” he said. “I think in terms of ones that we’d like to keep an eye on most closely, it’s the one.” Australian governments are preparing for a flu pandemic, and some corporations are stockpiling anti-viral drugs for their employees.”