China announced Friday it had made the first ever discovery of a deadly strain of bird flu in pigs, a development that could have ominous implications for efforts to restrict the disease's spread to humans.
Scientists discovered the lethal H5N1 virus in pigs tested in 2003 and again in others this year, China National Avian Influenza Reference Laboratory official Chen Hualan told journalists.
"It is not just the first time it has been found in China but in the world," Chen said, speaking on the sidelines of an International Symposium on the Prevention and Control of SARS and Avian Flu.
A chart she showed during a presentation at the conference indicated the avian influenza virus had been found in several pig farms in China in 2003 and 2004.
Chen, however, refused to provide more details.
"We probably should not talk about this anymore. Don't report it. Once it's reported, it will make a lot of people really scared," Chen said.
Up until now the virus has been found only in birds and poultry and its transmission to humans has been limited.
A senior World Health Organization (WHO) disease expert attending the conference expressed surprise at the revelation.
"It's the first time I heard at the conference that pigs are being reported [to carry the virus]," said Julie Hall, WHO's Beijing-based coordinator for communicable disease surveillance and response.
She expressed concerns the virus could mutate to a more lethal form and spread more easily to humans because pigs are good mixing vessels for viruses from birds and humans.
"Pigs are able to catch both the bird influenza virus as well as human influenza virus. The fear is if those two viruses swap together, they share genetic information and what comes out is more dangerous," Hall said to reporters.
Four contenders are squaring up to succeed Antonio Guterres as secretary-general of the UN, which faces unprecedented global instability, wars and its own crushing budget crisis. Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan and Senegal’s Macky Sall are each to face grillings by 193 member states and non-governmental organizations for three hours today and tomorrow. It is only the second time the UN has held a public question-and-answer, a format created in 2016 to boost transparency. Ultimately the five permanent members of the UN’s top body, the Security Council, hold the power, wielding vetoes over who leads the
A humanoid robot that won a half-marathon race for robots in Beijing on Sunday ran faster than the human world record in a show of China’s technological leaps. The winner from Honor, a Chinese smartphone maker, completed the 21km race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, said a WeChat post by the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, also known as Beijing E-Town, where the race began. That was faster than the human world record holder, Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, who finished the same distance in about 57 minutes in March at the Lisbon road race. The performance by the robot marked a significant step forward
An earthquake registering a preliminary magnitude of 7.7 off northern Japan on Monday prompted a short-lived tsunami alert and the advisory of a higher risk of a possible mega-quake for coastal areas there. The Cabinet Office and the Japan Meteorological Agency said there was a 1% chance for a mega-quake, compared to a 0.1% chance during normal times, in the next week or so following the powerful quake near the Chishima and Japan trenches. Officials said the advisory was not a quake prediction but urged residents in 182 towns along the northeastern coasts to raise their preparedness while continuing their daily lives. Prime
HAZARDOUS CONDITION: The typhoon’s sheer size, with winds extending 443km from its center, slowed down the ability of responders to help communities, an official said The US Coast Guard was searching for six people after losing contact with their disabled boat off the coast of Guam following Typhoon Sinlaku. The crew of the 44m dry cargo vessel, the US-registered Mariana, on Wednesday notified the coast guard that the boat had lost its starboard engine and needed assistance, Petty Officer 3rd Class Avery Tibbets said yesterday. The coast guard set up a one-hour communication schedule with the vessel, but lost contact on Thursday. A Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules aircraft was launched to search for the six people on board, but it had to return to Guam because of
RSS