Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

[Jeremy]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20060620.wpeibirdflu0620/BNStory/National/home

Federal lab needs 12 more days to confirm if avian flu has hit P.E.I.


Canadian Press


The questions raised by the discovery of an H5 avian flu virus on a Prince Edward Island poultry farm can't yet be put to rest. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency announced Tuesday that its laboratory could not find any avian flu viruses in samples taken from the birds on the farm.

The negative results don't mean the original finding was false. But this development does mean that the agency's lab will now have to try to inoculate eggs with material from the bird samples. If they succeed in growing virus, test results in about 12 days could indicate what the virus was.

?We can't produce the same test result in Winnipeg that the Atlantic Veterinary College produced on testing the samples,? Dr. Jim Clark, national manager of CFIA's avian influenza working group, said in a conference call for journalists.

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?All samples that we have in Winnipeg have been tested, with negative results.?

The testing was done at CFIA's National Centre for Foreign Animal Diseases in Winnipeg.

While signs point to an avian influenza virus of low pathogenicity, this setback means it will be at least another 12 days before the agency can answer the question the original finding posed: Is this the first sign of the Asian H5N1 avian flu virus in North America?

CFIA officials don't think so. Clark said the agency was lifting a quarantine imposed on a second farm because of lack of disease among birds there.

The quarantine was ordered Sunday after CFIA investigators learned there has been human traffic ? and perhaps movement of poultry ? between the two farms. Samples from the second farm also failed to show evidence of avian influenza viruses, Clark said.

Four geese at the first farm died on June 5. But the remainder of the birds in the mixed, free-range flock ? additional geese, ducks and chickens ? were healthy. CFIA takes the lack of illness in the chickens as a positive sign; the Asian H5N1 viruses have been lethal to chickens.

The entire flock has since been euthanized as a precautionary measure.

The worrisome Asian H5N1 virus has infected at least 228 people ? killing 130 of them ? in 10 countries across Asia, eastern Europe and North Africa. More than 50 countries to date have reported finding the virus in either poultry flocks or in wild birds.

 

[Theresa42]

No Additional Evidence of Avian Influenza Found in P.E.I. Backyard Flock

No Additional Evidence of Avian Influenza Found in P.E.I. Backyard Flock

From the CFIA...

No Additional Evidence of Avian Influenza Found in P.E.I. Backyard Flock

OTTAWA, June 20, 2006 - Testing by Canada?s avian influenza (AI) reference laboratory in Winnipeg has found no additional evidence of AI virus in birds from a small backyard flock in western Prince Edward Island.

Samples from the flock, including an index bird, were sent to the Winnipeg lab for confirmatory testing consistent with Canada?s procedures for preliminary findings of H5/H7 AI virus in poultry. All birds tested negative on serological and virological tests.

The fact that the H5 virus was not detected in testing at the Winnipeg lab, along with the absence of clinical signs of disease in the birds depopulated in the flock, indicates that only a very small amount of low pathogenicity virus may have been present in the index bird. A finding of incidental contamination in the index bird would not be unexpected given that it spent time out of doors and other birds on the farm were confirmed to have co-mingled with wild migratory birds which commonly carry AI viruses.

Canada?s AI response protocols, agreed to by the federal and provincial governments, require that disease control measures be immediately implemented upon preliminary findings of an H5 or H7 virus since these subtypes have the potential to mutate into highly pathogenic forms.

The Winnipeg lab will attempt to grow virus from samples from the index bird in order to characterize the virus. This process will take up to two weeks. Ultimately, it may not be possible to gain further information about the virus. This situation is not unusual as was evidenced in the 2005 survey of AI in wild birds.

Given the initial finding of H5, a quarantine on the index premises will be maintained until test results are complete consistent with Canada?s precautionary approach and guidelines of the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).

Birds from a second premises, that had frequent contacts with the index premises, were also tested as a precautionary measure and all results were negative. A quarantine that had been placed on this second premises has been released.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) will report new information regarding this situation as it becomes available. The CFIA advises bird owners to routinely practice strict biosecurity to protect their birds from AI and other threats. For additional information on avian influenza, visit the CFIA website at www.inspection.gc.ca

http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/corpaffr/newcom/2006/20060620e.shtml

 

[Jeremy]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

Let's see.

The birds died on June 5th.

We won't have test results now until at least July 2nd.

Bravo Canada. Bravo!

We can get faster test results from Nigeria than we can from Canada.

This is unacceptable.

 

[Theresa42]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

Also, wtf do they mean by "absence of clinical signs"? I thought the goslings died?? Not to mention walked funny the day before they died.

 

[HenryN]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

Let's see.

The birds died on June 5th.

We won't have test results now until at least July 2nd.

Bravo Canada. Bravo!

We can get faster test results from Nigeria than we can from Canada.

This is unacceptable.

The H5N1 in the samples have been killed. These samples are now PCR negative. There will be NO virus, NO data, and NO OIE report.

 

[Mingus]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

With strong sample they can have their fragment right away and sending them to the sequencing procedure.

When a sample is weak, some PCR reaction of long fragment (usually for sequencing procedure) are not enought sensitive.

The usual procedure is to do a viral culture...
this take at least a week...

then they try again the PCR reaction...

weak sampling procedure or shipment procedure can lead to a weak sample as a late infection...

A lot of details can scrap a sample.

 

[HenryN]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

Confusion ! :banghead:

There is no confusion. It was H5N1 and the evidence has been destroyed.

 

[Mingus]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

a lack of dry ice...

a drunk veterinarian...

 

[Mingus]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

Directly From the Canadian Food Inspection Agency

http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/anima/heasan/disemala/avflu/situatione.shtml

Avian Influenza - Latest Information
E-mail Updates

Latest Information - June 19, 2006
Testing by Canada’s avian influenza (AI) reference laboratory in Winnipeg has found no additional evidence of AI virus in birds from a small backyard flock in western Prince Edward Island.
Samples from the flock, including an index bird, were sent to the Winnipeg lab for confirmatory testing consistent with Canada’s procedures for preliminary findings of H5/H7 AI virus in poultry. All birds tested negative on serological and virological tests.
The Winnipeg lab will attempt to grow virus from samples from the index bird in order to characterize the virus. This process will take up to two weeks. Ultimately, it may not be possible to gain further information about the virus. This situation is not unusual as was evidenced in the 2005 survey of AI in wild birds.

And from the sub-link

No Additional Evidence of Avian Influenza Found in P.E.I. Backyard Flock

OTTAWA, June 20, 2006 - Testing by Canada’s avian influenza (AI) reference laboratory in Winnipeg has found no additional evidence of AI virus in birds from a small backyard flock in western Prince Edward Island.

Samples from the flock, including an index bird, were sent to the Winnipeg lab for confirmatory testing consistent with Canada’s procedures for preliminary findings of H5/H7 AI virus in poultry. All birds tested negative on serological and virological tests.

The fact that the H5 virus was not detected in testing at the Winnipeg lab, along with the absence of clinical signs of disease in the birds depopulated in the flock, indicates that only a very small amount of low pathogenicity virus may have been present in the index bird. A finding of incidental contamination in the index bird would not be unexpected given that it spent time out of doors and other birds on the farm were confirmed to have co-mingled with wild migratory birds which commonly carry AI viruses.

Canada’s AI response protocols, agreed to by the federal and provincial governments, require that disease control measures be immediately implemented upon preliminary findings of an H5 or H7 virus since these subtypes have the potential to mutate into highly pathogenic forms.

The Winnipeg lab will attempt to grow virus from samples from the index bird in order to characterize the virus. This process will take up to two weeks. Ultimately, it may not be possible to gain further information about the virus. This situation is not unusual as was evidenced in the 2005 survey of AI in wild birds.

Given the initial finding of H5, a quarantine on the index premises will be maintained until test results are complete consistent with Canada’s precautionary approach and guidelines of the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).

Birds from a second premises, that had frequent contacts with the index premises, were also tested as a precautionary measure and all results were negative. A quarantine that had been placed on this second premises has been released.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) will report new information regarding this situation as it becomes available. The CFIA advises bird owners to routinely practice strict biosecurity to protect their birds from AI and other threats. For additional information on avian influenza, visit the CFIA website at www.inspection.gc.ca

- 30 -

For additional information, contact:

Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Media Relations
(613) 228-6682

 

[Mingus]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

So they test for H5 and for H7 serologically(ELISA or IHA) and by PCR.

Theses test where negative.

They will try viral culture on MDCK or probably on Eggs end they will tray again the PCR like I explained earlier.

Did they perform a PCR test on the M gene (usually this is the most sensitive and short segment is only needed) ? - nobody knows...

 

[HenryN]

Re: Canadian bird flu case not highly pathogenic H5N1

Lab fails to find any avian flu viruses

http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/index.cfm?sid=2989&sc=1[SIZE=-6]


[/SIZE]Huntley, P.E.I., farm where goslings died will remain under quarantine for a further 12 days while CFIA tries further testing. [SIZE=-6]

[/SIZE]By Ron Ryder
The Guardian
[SIZE=-6]
[/SIZE]Follow-up tests on goslings suspected of carrying avian flu have shown no sign of the disease, according to a veterinarian at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

Preliminary tests carried out by the Atlantic Veterinary College on four geese who died June 5 at a Huntley farm suggested they had carried an H5 influenza virus. A variant of the H5 virus, H5N1, has spread from birds to human in some cases in Asia. There have been 228 people infected, of whom 130 died.

But on Tuesday, Dr. Jim Clark of CFIA?s influenza working group said a Winnipeg laboratory could not find any samples of avian flu on samples taken from the farm.

The West Prince farm had 40 geese, ducks and chickens, all of which were destroyed when evidence of the disease was detected.

Clark said samples of blood, tissue and feces taken from one of the dead goslings and and from the 37 culled animals showed no sign of avian influenza.

?We have confidence in the work done by the Atlantic Veterinary College,? he said. ?All suggestions are that the presence of this disease was incidental at a very low level and that it was unrelated to the cause of death in the gosling tested.?

Clark said there have been cases in the past in which virus found on a sample animal degraded in shipping to the point that they couldn?t be detected.

?It suggests that the virus that had been present but was very low pathogen or low growth, certainly it didn?t survive long,? he said.

Clark said the farm where the goslings died will remain under quarantine for a further 12 days while CFIA tries further testing to cultivate virus from the tissue samples. If virus is detected at that point, the farm will have to be disinfected.

A second farm, placed under quarantine for possible contact with the suspect farm, will have its quarantine lifted immediately.

?I?m sure this is a big relief to everyone. To the people who may have had worries about human infection and to the industry in general,? said Clark.

The commercial bird industry is relatively small on P.E.I. There are just seven operations raising chicken for meat in the province and 12 producers registered as egg producers.

Janet Murphy, general manager of the Chicken Farmers of Prince Edward Island,

said they don?t expect any serious repercussions from the discovery of what appears to be avian influenza in four dead goslings taken from a backyard flock in Huntley.

Murphy said the industry as a whole has been preparing for the discovery of such an illness and has been working with officials from both the provincial Health Department and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to prepare containment measures.

?The first thing we have to say is that this farmer did exactly the right thing by coming forward and reporting to authorities when he suspected something wrong with his animal,? she said.

?It certainly has raised concerns but I think we have the impact limited in this case by the fact that there has been an emergency response plan for poultry.?

The Island commercial poultry growers, who produce five million kilograms of meat every year, have outfitted barns with containment measures to keep wild birds away and have sought to keep the barn environment and the outside world as separate as possible.

?They have to have a bench at the door where they can take off one pair of shoes and swing around and put on the shoes for inside the barn,? Murphy said.

?It becomes like putting on a seat belt . . .

There?s some people who say, ?I?ve farmed for 20 years, why should l have to do this?? But they understand it?s for the health of the animals.?

Murphy said the strict cordoning of barns makes sense for large producers.

She said the same things might not be practical for people who raise small flocks for personal consumption or local sale, but the industry as a whole has to do what it can to contain any disease.

?We work with other farmers and try to keep people informed about what?s going on,? she said. ?There?s room for everybody.?

Michael Cummiskey, general manager of the Egg Producers of Prince Edward Island, said his industry?s 12 registered farmers have adopted a disease prevention approach called Start Clean, Stay Clean built around disinfection and strictly controlled exposure of their laying flocks.

?Producers have a biosecurity program in place with the aim of keeping illnesses from getting in among their flocks,? he said.

Clark said CFIA is recommending poultry farmers large and small take measures to cut off the risk of flocks being infected.

He said they should be careful in introducing new animals, should disinfect footwear and should keep human visitors to a bare minimum.

?One of the big things is that they have to control any contact between their flocks and the migratory flocks of waterfowl that are the natural reservoirs of the influenza virus,? he said