Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

[HenryN]

Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany


From correspondents in Brussels
June 24, 2007 11:35pm

<!-- Lead Content Panel -->THE highly pathogenic bird flu virus H5N1 has been found in two dead swans in Germany, the European Commission said today.
The European Union executive said German authorities had informed Brussels that laboratory tests carried out at a regional laboratory in Bavaria had confirmed the deadly strain in the birds.
Precautionary measures were now being taken, the Commission said in a statement.

http://www.news.com.au/mercury/story/0,22884,21961765-5012784,00.html

PREVIOUS THREAD HERE: Germany - H5N1 confirmed in 5 swans, 1 duck, 1 goose

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

<TABLE width=500 align=center summary="" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle bgColor=#c0c0c0 height=24>Three cases of H5N1 bird flu confirmed in Germany </TD></TR><TR><TD>
Three wild birds in Germany have died of the feared H5N1 strain of bird flu, a health official in Nuremberg in southern Germany said on Sunday. </TD></TR><TR><TD>
Katja Guenther told AFP tests carried out by the Friedrich Loeffler Institute confirmed that two swans and a duck suffered from the H5N1 strain of the virus.

She said tests were being conducted on another seven birds who died of bird flue to see whether they too had been carriers of H5N1, which is potentially lethal for humans.

The dead wild birds who were infected with the virus were found near Nuremberg in the past week.

Local authorities said at the weekend that they planned to cordon off areas to prevent the disease spreading.

http://www.physorg.com/printnews.php?newsid=101895953

H5N1 was found on a poultry farm in the Czech Republic last week, prompting the slaughter of some 6,000 turkeys.

Germany battled a bird flu epidemic in 2005. It broke out on the Baltic Sea island of Ruegen and spread to six of the country's 16 states.

The disease spread to mammals, killing a cat and a stone marten, but did not affect humans.

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

News | 24.06.2007 | 13:00 UTC

Bird flu found in southern Germany

German authorities have posted caution signs and cordoned off two Bavarian lakes after seven dead birds tested positive for the H5N1 bird flu virus, the first cases reported in Germany this year.

N&#252;rnberg city authorities warned people to stay away from waterfowl after five swans, one duck and one goose all tested positive for bird flu.

The results of further tests were expected within a few days.

Bird flu was reported earlier this month in the Czech Republic and also surfaced elsewhere in the European Union earlier this year.

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/function/0,,12215_cid_2621077,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

<TABLE width=500 align=center summary="" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle bgColor=#c0c0c0 height=24>Three cases of H5N1 bird flu confirmed in Germany </TD></TR><TR><TD>
Three wild birds in Germany have died of the feared H5N1 strain of bird flu, a health official in Nuremberg in southern Germany said on Sunday.
</TD></TR><TR><TD>
Katja Guenther told AFP tests carried out by the Friedrich Loeffler Institute confirmed that two swans and a duck suffered from the H5N1 strain of the virus.

She said tests were being conducted on another seven birds who died of bird flue to see whether they too had been carriers of H5N1, which is potentially lethal for humans.

The dead wild birds who were infected with the virus were found near Nuremberg in the past week.

Local authorities said at the weekend that they planned to cordon off areas to prevent the disease spreading.

http://www.physorg.com/printnews.php?newsid=101895953

H5N1 was found on a poultry farm in the Czech Republic last week, prompting the slaughter of some 6,000 turkeys.

Germany battled a bird flu epidemic in 2005. It broke out on the Baltic Sea island of Ruegen and spread to six of the country's 16 states.

The disease spread to mammals, killing a cat and a stone marten, but did not affect humans.


</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

The above comments suggest that 10 dead wild birds have now tested positive for avian influenza (i.e. all 10 are positive for Qinghai Clade 2.2 H5N1).

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

Bird flu cases in southern Germany show highly pathogenic H5N1 variant

The Associated Press
Sunday, June 24, 2007

BERLIN: At least some of the cases of bird flu discovered this weekend near the southern city of Nuremberg involve a highly pathogenic variety of the H5N1 strain, Germany's Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection said Sunday.
All seven of the birds ? five swans, one duck and one goose found dead on Friday and Saturday ? had the H5N1 strain, and further tests were still ongoing to determine if they were infected with the highly pathogenic variety. It is the first bird flu discovered in Germany this year, and the first report of wild birds infected this year within the European Union.
The H5N1 strain has, however, been found in poultry farms in three other EU countries this year: Hungary, Britain and the Czech Republic, the European Commission said.
Thirteen EU nations were hit by bird flu last year ? Austria, Denmark, Poland, Italy, Greece, Britain, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Hungary and France.
Bird flu is believed to spread along bird migration routes.
The H5N1 strain has decimated poultry stocks since 2003 and killed at least 191 people worldwide, most of them directly infected by sick birds in Asia. Experts fear, however, that the virus could mutate into a form easily transmitted between people.

http://www.iht.com/bin/print.php?id=6300990

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

H5N1 bird-flu
New bird flu fears in southern Germany
Sunday 24 June 2007 13:41
Scientists were Sunday examining the remains of eight birds feared to have contracted avian influenza in the Bavarian city of Nuremberg.
Officials set up a four-kilometres exclusion zone around two lakes where the wild swans, geese and ducks were found over the past few days, local health officials said.

Veterinary experts at the Friedrich Loeffler Institute on the island of Riems were examining the animals to see if they had contracted the H5N1 bird-flu strain, known to be deadly to humans.

In the meantime, officials ordered that all poultry farmers in the exclusion zone keep their animals indoors. Pet owners were warned not to let their dogs or cats roam free in the affected area.

Nuremberg is located 120 kilometres from the border with the Czech Republic, where an outbreak of bird flu at a poultry farm was confirmed on Thursday.



The disease was discovered after nearly one-third of the 6,000 turkeys perished at the farm in the village of Tisova in the country's east. The rest of the flock was culled.


The last outbreak of bird flu in Bavaria occurred in April 2006.


Pharmaceutical companies in the United States and Europe have been contributing to a global stockpile of vaccine for the H5N1 strain.


<!-- -->
Some 190 people around the world have died of bird flu since 2003, mainly through coming into close contact with infected poultry, according to the World Health Organization.


Scientists fear the virus could mutate into a form easily transmissible between humans, which could touch off a global pandemic that would kill millions. dpa ms ds

http://jurnalo.com/jurnalo/storyPage.do?story_id=43819

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/06240702/H5N1_Germany_Failure.html

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

Published: June 24, 2007 at 11:06 AM
Bird flu found in Germany
NUREMBERG, Germany, June 24 (UPI) -- Seven dead birds found near two lakes in southern Germany tested positive for the H5N1 bird flu virus, it was reported Sunday.
The find marked the first cases of bird flu in Germany this year, said authorities who cordoned off the two Bavarian lakes where the birds were found.
Authorities in Nuremberg warned people to stay away from waterfowl after the five swans, one duck and one goose all tested positive for the H5N1 virus, Deutsche Welle said. Bird flu was reported earlier this month in the Czech Republic and was found elsewhere in Europe earlier this year.

http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Science/2007/06/24/bird_flu_found_in_germany/7429/

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

Cases of H5N1 bird flu confirmed in Germany


AFP

Published: Sunday, June 24, 2007
BERLIN, Germany - Three wild birds have died of the feared H5N1 strain of bird flu, a health official in Nuremberg in southern Germany said on Sunday.
Katja Guenther told AFP tests carried out by the Friedrich Loeffler Institute confirmed that two swans and a wild goose had suffered from the H5N1 strain of the virus.
She said tests were being conducted on another seven birds, mostly swans, who died of bird flue to see whether they too had been carriers of H5N1, which is potentially lethal for humans.
The dead wild birds who were infected with the virus were found at two lakes near Nuremberg in the past week.
Guenther said local authorities had cordoned off an area with a four-km radius from where the sick birds were found.
Nobody will be allowed to bring birds into the area or take them from there for the next three weeks, and poultry in the area must be kept indoors for the same period.
The Friedrich Loeffler Institute was reported as saying the new German cases of H5N1 avian flu could be related to an outbreak of the virus in the Czech Republic.
H5N1 was found on a poultry farm in the central Czech Republic last week, prompting the slaughter of some 6,000 turkeys.
Germany battled a bird flu epidemic last year. It broke out on the Baltic Sea island of Ruegen and spread to six of the country's 16 states, including Bavaria.
The disease spread to mammals, infecting three cats and a stone marten, but did not affect humans.
The last reported case in Germany of the highly pathogenic strain of bird flu was reported in Dresden in August last year. It killed a swan in the eastern city's zoo.
According to the World Health Organization, bird flu has claimed more than 130 lives worldwide since 2003, mostly in southeast Asia.

http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/story.html?id=78c7e109-450e-41b8-b212-0bf83144e232&k=51077

[sharon sanders]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

Previous Germany thread:

http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=27741

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

AVIAN INFLUENZA (109): GERMANY (BAVARIA), WILD BIRDS
************************************************** **
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 24 Jun 2007
Source: AFX News Limited via Forbes [edited]
<http://www.forbes.com/business/feeds/afx/2007/06/24/afx3851758.html>


3 wild birds in Germany have died of the feared H5N1 strain of
bird flu, a health official in Nuremberg in southern Germany said.

Katja Guenther said tests carried out by the Friedrich Loeffler
Institute confirmed that 2 swans and a duck suffered from the H5N1
strain of the virus.

She said tests were being conducted on another 7 birds that died of
bird flu to see whether they too had been carriers of H5N1, which is
potentially lethal for humans.

The dead wild birds that were infected with the virus were found near
Nuremberg in the past week.

Local authorities said at the weekend that they planned to cordon off
areas to prevent the disease from spreading.

H5N1 was found on a poultry farm in the Czech Republic last week,
prompting the slaughter of some 6000 turkeys.

Germany battled a bird flu epidemic in 2005. It broke out on the
Baltic Sea island of Ruegen and spread to 6 of the country's 16
states.

The disease spread to mammals, killing a cat and a stone marten
[weasel-like small carnivore. - Mod.JW], but did not affect humans.

--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail Rapporteur Mary Marshall

[Germany's last outbreak of HPAI H5N1 was notified to the OIE on 7 Apr
2006; it referred to a turkey farm in the state of Sachsen. Contact
with wild birds was reportedly suspected; see
<http://www.oie.int/eng/info/hebdo/AIS_23.HTM#Sec1>.
The outbreak was eradicated by stamping out, and on 28 Jul 2006,
Germany officially announced its regained freedom of HPAI as from 28
Jul 2006, in accordance with Chapter 2.7.12 of OIE's Terrestrial
Animal Health Code.

The confirmation of the new cases in wild birds has been carried out
by the OIE's Reference Laboratory for highly pathogenic and low
pathogenic avian influenza at the Federal Research Centre for Virus
Diseases of Animals (BFAV), Institute of Diagnostic Virology, Insel
(island) Riems, northern Germany. This is one of OIE's 7 avian
influenza reference laboratories worldwide.

During 2006, H5N1 was detected in wild birds in several European
countries, including Germany; see EU's Animal Disease Notification
System (ADNS) map at
<http://ec.europa.eu/food/animal/diseases/adns/map/20060802/europe.htm>
and graphs showing the results of the surveillance undertaken in wild
birds, including the number of cases per week, per species and per
country, at
<http://ec.europa.eu/food/animal/diseases/adns/adns_wildbirds2006.pdf>.

The last positive bird was detected on 2 Aug 2006.

The ADNS surveillance has been continued throughout 2006 and 2007,
with negative results. The 2007 graph, updated 21 Jun 2007, is
available at
<http://ec.europa.eu/food/animal/diseases/adns/adns_wildbirds2007.pdf>.
Unfortunately, it includes only the number of positives (which, since
2 Aug 2006, has been -- throughout -- zero), but not the denominators,
namely the number of wild birds investigated.

Statements from proponents and opponents of the role wild birds might
play in the epidemiology of H5N1, are expected:

- Do these German cases reflect a self-sustained infection evolving
within wild bird populations, or have they been infected from
commercial poultry?

- Is the Nuremberg event related, directly or indirectly, to the
recent outbreak in a commercial turkey flock in the Czech Republic?

- Was the source of infection there contact with wild birds or the
other way around (namely, initial Czech infection originating from
infected commercial poultry elsewhere, subsequently infecting wild
birds)?

It will be surprising if the results of molecular studies of the
various viruses isolated will convince either group [proponents or
opponents] to accept unwelcome conclusions.

New results of the ADNS surveillance in wild birds in Europe will be
interesting to follow as they become available. - Mod.AS]

[see also:
Avian influenza (108) - Germany (Bavaria), wild birds 20070624.2040
2006

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

AVIAN INFLUENZA (109): GERMANY (BAVARIA), WILD BIRDS
************************************************** **
Statements from proponents and opponents of the role wild birds might
play in the epidemiology of H5N1, are expected:

- Do these German cases reflect a self-sustained infection evolving
within wild bird populations, or have they been infected from
commercial poultry?

- Is the Nuremberg event related, directly or indirectly, to the
recent outbreak in a commercial turkey flock in the Czech Republic?

- Was the source of infection there contact with wild birds or the
other way around (namely, initial Czech infection originating from
infected commercial poultry elsewhere, subsequently infecting wild
birds)?

It will be surprising if the results of molecular studies of the
various viruses isolated will convince either group [proponents or
opponents] to accept unwelcome conclusions.

New results of the ADNS surveillance in wild birds in Europe will be
interesting to follow as they become available. - Mod.AS]

[see also:
Avian influenza (108) - Germany (Bavaria), wild birds 20070624.2040
2006

ProMed trying to take a neutral stance, but the position of the domestic poultry in the Czech Republic infecting the multiple species of wild birds in Germany is simply absurd (maybe the dead and dying domestic poultry used carrier pigeons to fly the H5N1 infections to the west and infect the multiple wild bird species!).

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=600 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD width=44>Title</TD><TD width=10>:</TD><TD width=546>Six cases of H5N1 bird flu confirmed in Germany </TD></TR><TR><TD width=44>By</TD><TD width=10>:</TD><TD width=546></TD></TR><TR><TD width=44>Date</TD><TD width=10>:</TD><TD width=546>25 June 2007 0044 hrs (SST) </TD></TR><TR><TD width=44>URL</TD><TD width=10>:</TD><TD width=546>http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stori...284236/1/.html

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE borderColor=#cccccc cellSpacing=5 borderColorDark=#cccccc cellPadding=3 width=600 align=center borderColorLight=#cccccc border=1><TBODY><TR><TD>BERLIN : Six wild birds in Germany have died of the feared H5N1 strain of bird flu, a German institute said on Sunday.

Six out of a total of 14 birds tested positive for the H5N1 strain of the virus, the Friedrich Loeffler Institute institute said.

A health official, Katja Guenther, said earlier that tests carried out by the same institute confirmed that two swans and a wild goose had been infected with H5N1.

Tests were still being conducted on another five birds which had died of bird flu to see whether they too had been carriers of H5N1, which is potentially lethal for humans.

The dead wild birds infected with the virus were found at two lakes near Nuremberg in the past week.

Guenther said local authorities had cordoned off an area with a four-kilometre radius from where the diseased birds were found.

Nobody will be allowed to bring birds into the area or take them out from there for the next three weeks, and poultry in the area must be kept indoors for the same period.

The Friedrich Loeffler Institute was reported as saying the new German cases of H5N1 avian flu could be related to an outbreak of the virus in the Czech Republic.

H5N1 was found on a poultry farm in the central Czech Republic last week, prompting the slaughter of some 6,000 turkeys.

Germany battled a bird flu epidemic last year. It broke out on the Baltic Sea island of Ruegen and spread to six of the country's 16 states, including Bavaria.

The disease spread to mammals, infecting three cats and a stone marten, but did not affect humans.

The last reported case in Germany of the highly pathogenic strain of bird flu was reported in Dresden in August last year. It killed a swan in the eastern city's zoo.

According to the World Health Organisation, bird flu has claimed more than 130 lives worldwide since 2003, mostly in Southeast Asia. - AFP/de

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

<TABLE class=lan18 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="95%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=lan18 vAlign=bottom align=middle height=30>Bird flu discovered in Germany
</TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#ffffff height=4></TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#999999 height=2></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="50%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD height=5></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=hui12 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="95%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle>www.chinaview.cn 2007-06-25 05:04:58 </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="50%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD height=10></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=hui12 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="95%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle> </TD><TD class=lanx12 width=160>Adjust font size: </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="50%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD height=10></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=lt14 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="93%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=lt14>



BERLIN, June 24 (Xinhua) -- Seven dead birds discovered near two lakes in southern Germany tested positive for the H5N1 bird flu virus, media reported Sunday.
The dead birds were found in two Bavarian lakes, which were cordoned off after the find, the first cases in the country this year.
People were asked to stay away from waterfowl after the five swans, one duck and one goose all tested positive for the H5N1 virus, German media said.
Bird flu was found last year in northern Germany.
Earlier this month it was reported in the Czech Republic and found elsewhere in Europe at the beginning of this year. 　

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-06/25/content_6285584.htm

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[HenryN]

Re: Deadly bird flu strain found in Germany

Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/06240704/H5N1_Czech_WB.html