A dopey idea = the intention is to keep the virus in the country of origin. They will deny the H5N1 virus a passport and educate it about just exactly where the borders are. To stop the virus being a stowaway [the oldest trick in the book for getting from one place to another illicitly], they will stop ALL travel of humans and birds to and from infected countries.
Since H5N1 viruses are disinclined to apply for passports, and aren't good at reading maps to see where borders are, and stowing away in birds and humans is their modus operandi, the plan to prevent spread doesn't seem very good. It takes just a single virus to get through the border and it's on its way.
observer.guardian.co.uk
<One leading British expert, Professor John Oxford, commenting on the new research, said the virus had broken down the 'final door' which prevented it being spread between people. 'This is a very important step towards the conclusion that we all wanted to avoid,' he said.
In 2004, avian flu infected at last 44 people in eight south Asian countries, killing 32. Until the late 1990s, it had not been thought that the virus strain - H5N1 - could spread to humans but there is now a worldwide effort to combat the disease before it spreads to many other countries.
The Sars outbreak has convinced governments they have to work quickly in order to prevent travellers from spreading it. The emphasis is now largely on containing the virus within the country of origin.>
If people aren't allowed to travel, sales of the Airbus 380 won't be looking good: airbus.com Avian flu should love traveling in that.
We should expect continued development of the H5N1 virus into a fully humanized form. So far, it seems to be making good progress this year and as the number of infections increases, the humanizing process will accelerate as the number of trials of new virals compiles an enormous gene pool to conduct experiments on humans.
Mortality continues to be 75% [3 people dead out of 4 infected for those not inclined to maths]. That's 1 person left alive of every 4 infected. That one person is probably not feeling very good either, and I suppose will have permanently damaged lungs.
2005 The Year of the Rooster. What a name in the year of H5N1 avian flu, most commonly found in hens and roosters.
Mqurice |
