Bird Flu Virus Is Now Known To Have Evolved In Two Forms

What was only a supposition, now it is proven, that the bird flu virus has evolved in two strains that are distinct genetically speaking. This is not good news as it might cause even more deaths among humans and the researchers will have to work double for finding an effective vaccine against these two forms of bird flu virus.

Between the year 2003 and 2005, US scientists have been collecting and analyzing more than 300 samples of H5N1 virus taken from infected birds and humans. They discovered that in 2003 and 2004 the human and bird population was affected by the same type of virus that was active in Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. But in 2005 a new strain of H5N1 virus appeared and infected people from Indonesia. This virus is in a continuous genetic development and as time goes by our treatment option become more and more restrained.

Since 2003 the virus affected 180 people and killed 100 from all over the world. Doctors are afraid that a pandemic could start if the virus is not kept under control and hope that this virus will remain a bird virus and will not change into a human one. If the virus gains the ability of transmitting itself from human to human then the whole world population is in danger.

Fortunately, according to the scientists those two forms of the virus do not have the possibility of spreading easily from on person to another.

Until now the US scientists have been trying to find a vaccine that will kill both viruses. The vaccine will be 100% definitive once the exact form of a pandemic virus is known. The scientists believe that one vaccine could offer partial protection against the other type of virus strain if it works against the first one.

Scientists need to move fast because the viruses have the ability of changing their status and of developing very fast, gaining even the possibility of transmitting themselves from one person to another.

The thing is that no one had expected for the virus to travel around the world so easily and to mutate so fast creating another strain. But scientists are confident that by keeping the virus under control in birds they can find a suitable vaccine in a year or two. As long as the governments work together and help each other there is no need for panic as there is still hope for a cure.

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Bird Flu Vaccine is Almost Ready to Go on the Market

A spokesman of World Health Organization announced that scientists have finally created a possible effective flu vaccine.

Clinical tests have been carried out with a flu vaccine made by Sanofi Pasteur. The conclusions were that there are needed two shots of the vaccine, administered four weeks apart, to immunize at least 50% of human organisms.

The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Anthony S. Fauci declared to be very enthusiastic about the new vaccine and its immunizing properties, also saying that he considers the tests to be a key step in the world's attempt to stop a possible global pandemic.

Currently the US government stockpiled only four million doses of the H5N1 vaccine, but this quantity is not enough to cover up all the people in case a pandemic starts.

A solution for stretching vaccine stores are administering along with the vaccine an immunity boosting substance (an adjuvant), and so, this will reduce the amount of the vaccine needed for immunizing the human body, and will improve the vaccine's effects.

Now, there are made clinical tests with adjuvant substances to see how the immune response to the vaccine is.

John Treanor, MD, director of the vaccine and treatment evaluation unit at the University of Rochester in New York, said that when it was discovered that it will be needed a higher dose of H5N1 vaccine to stimulate the wanted immunity, than a regular flu shot no one was taken by surprise, scientists suspecting this when first testing the vaccine.

The high-dose of bird flu vaccine stimulated a kind of antibody response that was known to have protected people in 1997 during an outbreak of H5N1 virus in Hong Kong.

Scientists do not know whether this vaccine will be effective in case of a human to human transmission of the virus and they are not willing to expose any study volunteers to potentially lethal bird flu.

In the process of developing much faster new bird flu vaccines, the US government is supporting the producers to move from growing vaccine virus in chicken eggs, to faster cell-culture techniques.

It is very important that producers accelerate the manufacture of new vaccines, because the H5N1 virus is fast mutating to more aggressive forms that might cause a human pandemic.

One good news is the governments are considering stockpiling H5N1 vaccine and that scientists are ready to create new improved vaccines in case of a development of the virus.

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Overview On Bird Flu H5N1 Virus

The bird flu viruses are mostly subtypes of Influenza Virus A. There are several H5 and H7 subtypes of the 'influenza A' virus that cause bird flu among the birds. The wild fowls are considered to be the reservoir of the bird flu virus since ages. The migratory birds carry the pathogens from place to place and in turn infect the local population of the birds causing wide spread deaths.

Till 1997, the virus was restricted to the arboreal species and pigs. They never infected humans. But, the deaths in Hong Kong and other parts of the south east Asian countries have raised alarm throughout the medical world. Though it was a known fact that bird flu viruses mutate to different kinds but this was the first time that the viruses adapted themselves to be strong enough to attack mammals including humans and dogs. This bird flu virus has been identified as the H5N1 virus, a subtype of the H5 viruses.

The complete name of this virus is HPAI A (H5N1) (highly pathogenic avian influenza virus). The present form of bird flu virus is a fast mutating virus and extremely pathogenic in form than the previous strains till date. The viruses are present in the respiratory system of many species of birds. So, the spread of the virus to any part of the world is inevitable. They are mostly carried by the migratory birds.

The H5N1 virus has mutated to a form that is capable of infesting the humans and some other mammals; and the impact could be fatal enough to kill the hosts. They generally attack the respiratory system and the symptoms are almost similar to normal flu. It has become a 'panzootic' virus which means it can attack any species.

The studies conducted on them show that they continually evolve through antigenic drift. They infect humans through direct contact with the infected birds or patients suffering from the bird flu. The infected birds pass the virus in the environment through their nasal secretion, saliva, feces and blood droplets. The virus moves into the human body through the nasal cavity or the mucous membrane of the eyes.

The virus H5N1 has really become a nightmare because of its kind to mutate very fast and the evolving status may take it to a very lethal form. The scientists working on bird flu are of the view that the consequence of the combination of this H5N1 virus with human flu virus may be so complicated that before anything would be thought, it would wipe out millions of lives.

Precaution is very important. So, if there is an outbreak in your area, be prepared to defy the bird flu virus with proper care and implement the methods instructed by the health department in your area.

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Is There Any Vaccination For Fighting Bird Flu?

The outbreak of the pandemic flu in the South East Asian countries created a wave of terror through out the world. There were evidences of the bird flu being spread to West and infecting some of the African countries. The possibility of a strike in the western world cannot be neglected since the pathogens or viruses of the bird flu are carried by the migratory birds.

The death of people in certain countries has raised an alarm about the incompetence of science and technology to create a vaccination for bird flu.

The preparation of the bird flu vaccine is not an easy task. The most important fact is that a vaccine for a virus cannot be prepared beforehand since the strain of the virus is not known till it attacks.

The bird flu viruses go on mutating through antigenic shift or drift. The mutation cannot be traced to find out what form it is taking. So, the scientists cannot prepare the vaccine before a pandemic occurs.

Thus, there lies the problem in formulating a vaccination for bird flu. The world is totally unaware of the kind of virus that is going to infest the humankind. Next problem in the line is, the preparation of the vaccination will take a long time after the outbreak. That is, it will take almost six months to prepare a vaccine and a year for its mass distribution.

At present, prototypes of the H5N1 virus vaccination have been prepared by the scientist which are able to provide some kind of protection to the body. The prototype vaccine is not a complete protection against the bird flu. All the health organizations of different countries are still working on it and China has claimed that they have prepared two types of vaccines for the H5N1 bird flu virus.

The vaccination can produce high accentuated antibodies in the immune system that can target the H5N1 virus and remain longer in the immune system. The WHO has acclaimed this effort and will provide China with a prototype vaccine for humans, for developing a more effective vaccine.

It's a good news that vaccines are soon going to be available for the deadly H5N1 virus which is the present threat to the world. The CDC and WHO are providing instruction to the Health Departments of the countries throughout the world to teach people how to prevent the infection of the bird flu.

There are some antiviral medicines like Tami flu, Relenza, and alike that can be taken to reduce the intensity of the attack and help the immune system of your body to fight.

Let's hope for better that the vaccines are made available, as soon as possible. Maintain personal hygiene for preventing the virus, because it cannot attack you if you are clean and healthy to beat it.
The author writes about a number of different topics. For more information on bird flu vaccination visit http://www.isitbirdflu.com/ and also visit the article pages: http://www.isitbirdflu.com/bird-flu-vaccine/ and http://www.isitbirdflu.com/bird-flu-virus/

How's and Why's Of Bird Flu Attack

Bird flu attacked many Nations. How and why it actually happened no one knows! The speed with which it spread all over the world was a mystery and confusion confounded. With its universal ?influence? it crippled many, without the distinction of race, color and nationality.

This bird-flu has the capacity to make such a big kill, the casualties of World War I and II put together will be a kindergarten stuff before the possible number of deaths due to bird flu.

With the drugs, antibiotics and vaccines developed so far to combat bird flu having proved ineffective, the alternative is now to search whether the nature has in store some natural herbs. If they are there, how to make their effective use is another matter for the researchers and scientists.

Can the Governments do something for the people to provide a protective cover in such emergent situations? What could do they do during Hurricane Katrina? At the time of Tsunami? That was just a small fraction of the world that was affected. What if the whole world were to be engulfed in bird flu?

Many Nations are at present attacked by bird flu but the damage is limited. As of now, the disease is not transmitted from human to human. Millions of birds and fowl are culled and destroyed in a desperate effort to contain it. But the virus of bird flu is evolving and changing. Sooner or later it will not spare the human beings, why should it? And why should the Nature come to the rescue? Have you been kind to the nature? We continue to exploit it to the hilt! Less said the better about the treatment human beings mete out to the animal kingdom!

The answer to the specific question-how did bird flu happen, I know will draw blank responses from you. I don't blame you. Human history, for that matter human health history is full off such ambiguities. But the projections about the possible consequence of a mass attack of bird-flu will be catastrophic! None has the solution. Nature has varied methods of population control. And when it uses those methods, it uses them ruthlessly.

It is indeed a no-win win situation. The question would no more be how did bird flu happen, the question then would be why did bird flu happen??

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