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To: James Strauss who wrote (12257)	4/1/2003 3:17:07 PM
From: Bucky Katt	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13094

I doubt it Jim. Air travel is a germ incubator all by itself. We have been talking about this extensively on the Rat thread since it started... In the lab, progress is being made in identifying the cause of SARS. Some say we could know in days. Scientists are also close to developing a diagnostic test. Still, Kaledin reports, breakthroughs can't come rapidly enough to stop this rapid-fire health threat. I own a 15 cent stock that has an applicable test technology in the works for this type virus, but they are too stupid to promote it. BROOMFIELD, Colo., Oct 29, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Xtrana, Inc. (XTRN) announced today that it has been awarded $986,051 over the next three years from the National Institutes of Health ("NIH") to develop a nucleic acid-based, microfluidic device to detect a panel of respiratory viruses from a single patient sample. Xtrana will collaborate with Micronics, Inc ("Micronics") of Redmond, Washington, for lab card and integrated device development, and The Children's Hospital in Denver for clinical specimens and medical expertise. The device to be developed is intended to allow physicians, within the course of a typical office visit, to easily and accurately identify a virus present within a patient sample, thereby allowing more effective and rapid treatment. The NIH estimates that there are more than one billion respiratory infections -- often referred to as the common cold -- annually. In the United States alone, there are 51 million office visits and 18 to 20 million antibiotic prescriptions written annually for patients suffering respiratory infection symptoms in spite of the fact that antibiotics usually are ineffective in treating viral disease. This practice has directly contributed to the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria. Recent investigations confirm that early detection and treatment of viral respiratory infections can reduce symptoms, hospital admissions due to complications such as asthma or pneumonia, and progression to secondary bacterial infections, while significantly reducing unnecessary use of antibiotics. Xtrana's proprietary Self-Contained Integrated Particle ("SCIP") strategy and unique nucleic acid sample preparation and assay chemistries expertise is ideally suited for this application. Xtrana has entered into a licensing and manufacturing agreement with Micronics to integrate the SCIP chemistries onto a microfluidic card platform. Using Micronics' patented microfluidics and microplumbing technology, it is intended that all steps of the assay would be performed within a disposable credit-card-sized device. The patient sample would be placed in the card, and the card would then be inserted into an instrument in the physician's office that includes the software, heating, and pumps necessary for automated diagnosis. Xtrana will also work directly with the Microbiology and Molecular Biology Diagnostic Laboratories and the Department of Infectious Disease of The Children's Hospital in Denver for product evaluation. The Children's Hospital is a primary center for research, diagnosis, and treatment of respiratory viral diseases, and works closely with a broad network of physicians. "This partnership with the NIH verifies the potential value of Xtrana's innovative technologies in current and future nucleic acid-based diagnostics," said Tim Dahltorp, Xtrana's CEO. "Compact, versatile, point-of-care diagnostic systems for accurate identification of respiratory viruses could significantly improve healthcare. Xtrana has been working with Micronics for the last six months on the development of single target SCIP platforms, and expects to have working prototypes available by the end of this year. This multi-target application is a logical extension of these prototypes. We believe that Xtrana's expertise in sample preparation combined with Micronics' microfluidic lab card technology and the clinical guidance of The Children's Hospital will significantly enhance our efforts to develop this application bigcharts.marketwatch.com{FB2...

To: James Strauss who wrote (12257)	4/1/2003 3:20:34 PM
From: James Strauss	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13094

Hong Kong Says It Will Quarantine SARS Victims Tuesday, April 01, 2003 HONG KONG — Hong Kong authorities said Tuesday they would move 240 infected people from a sealed apartment complex to rural quarantine camps, one of a series of new measures by Asian nations to contain a flu-like illness that has killed at least 63 people. Residents of Block E of the Amoy Gardens Apartment complex were being moved Tuesday night to the camps -- which were previously used for holidays -- one in the suburban New Territories and one in a rural part of Hong Kong island, said Dr. Leung Pak-yin, deputy director of health. Leung said "environmental factors" in the sealed-off building might be causing the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, but he did not elaborate in a news conference. There has been speculation a sewage leak might have spread the disease among residents of apartment units at one end of the 33-story building. Hong Kong officials said Tuesday an additional 75 people were hit by SARS, including 52 from the Amoy Gardens complex. It was not immediately clear how many of the new cases had come from Block E, which was sealed off Monday with barricades and police tape. Residents were told Monday they would have to stay inside for 10 days, with regular medical checkups and three free meals. They will get the same in the quarantine camps, Leung said, but it was not immediately clear what their living conditions will be like. Earlier Tuesday, Hong Kong officials said four recreational activity camps could be turned into quarantine centers for 1,000 people, but they were only sending the people from Amoy Gardens to two of them. Hong Kong on Tuesday night reported another death of SARS patient, for 16 total here and at least 63 worldwide. Out of more than 1,600 SARS cases globally, 685 have been in Hong Kong. Across Asia, nations were taking steps to contain the spread of the illness for which there is still no cure. Its initial symptoms include fever, dry cough and shortness of breath. Health officials in China urged physicians treating cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, to disinfect everything they touch and wear 12-layer surgical masks. Thailand invoked an emergency regulation to give health officials the authority to quarantine people for up to two weeks arriving travelers suspected of having the illness. In Singapore's airports, nurses examining arriving passengers said they had intercepted at least seven suspected cases of SARS in less than 24 hours. Seven nurses clad in yellow hospital gowns and surgical masks were the first to greet passengers on a flight from Beijing as soon as they stepped into the terminal from the boarding bridge, as airport officials gave reporters a glimpse at the new measures. Singapore's Health Minister Lim Hng Kiang has said that the disease likely entered the island nation through the airport. All of Singapore's 92 reported cases of SARS can be traced back to five people who had traveled to Hong Kong. Four In Australia, authorities announced the nation's first case Tuesday -- a man who had been in Singapore where tough quarantine measures are now in place. He has recovered and the illness has not spread, health authorities said. In Canada, where a health emergency has been declared in Ontario province, Toronto authorities reported that at least two children had been hospitalized with the disease, and three others had symptoms. Taiwan banned boats from sailing between an outlying island chain and mainland China, where the disease was first detected in southern Guangdong province in November. Meanwhile, the disease was causing other disruptions. In Geneva, the World Economic Forum said it has postponed until fall a Beijing meeting of business and government leaders because participants were concerned about the disease. The Olympic Council of Asia decided to shift the site of its April 22-23 meeting from Vietnam, where four people have died from SARS, to Thailand. British Prime Minister Tony Blair postponed his trip to China, the Chinese government said, but denied it had anything to do with SARS. The World Health Organization said researchers hope to pinpoint the cause of the illness soon. A WHO spokesman said Tuesday that investigators were also still awaiting permission to visit Guangdong where they hope to find clues into the disease's origin and spread. "The Chinese government has not covered up. There is no need," Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said Tuesday. "We have nothing to hide." foxnews.com The market doesn't like this news... A retreat from today's highs when news broke of the San Jose plane with four SARS passengers... Jim