The H7N9 bird flu virus isolate, which is crucial for vaccine development, yesterday arrived at a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) laboratory from China, the Central Epidemic Command Center said yesterday.
After the outbreak of the H7N9 avian influenza in China, the Taiwanese government requested the virus sample from China under the Cross-Strait Cooperation Agreement on Medicine and Public Health Affairs, the command center said.
The center said the virus isolate was delivered in accordance with international biosafety regulations, and the delivery was the first official cross-strait exchange of a pathogenic agent.
The virus sample received is A/Anhui/1/2013, so named because it was isolated from the first detected patient infected with H7N9 in Anhui Province.
The CDC laboratory will first cultivate the virus and use it to test against the existing diagnostic test kit for detecting H7N9 infections, in addition to conducting other relevant research experiments, the command center said, adding that the virus cultivation would require a biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures.
The center said it is keeping in contact with numerous agencies around the world in order to acquire the latest information on the development of a vaccine, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has agreed to share its vaccine seed strain once it has been developed.
The command center also cautioned the public against spreading false rumors about H7N9 avian influenza, citing a recent rumor on the Internet that the government was concealing a fatal H7N9 infection in Taiwan.
The spreading of such rumors is prohibited by the Communicable Disease Control Act (傳染病防治法) and the Social Order Maintenance Act (社會秩序維護法), the center said, and rumor-mongers would be subject to a fine of up to NT$500,000.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
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