Biosecurity News in Brief

March 16, 2010
         

Note: All links accessed and active on day of Biosecurity News in Brief publication.
            

2009 H1N1 Influenza
Planning for the Inevitable: Preparing for Epidemic and Pandemic Respiratory Illness in the Shadow of H1N1 Influenza (Clinical Infectious Diseases) The recent outbreak of novel H1N1 influenza has underscored the importance of hospital preparedness in responding to epidemic and pandemic respiratory illness.

Molecular Evolution of Human H1N1 and H3N2 Influenza A Virus in Thailand, 2006–2009 (PLoS One) Influenza A viruses are negative-strand RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae which can be divided into subtypes based on the antigenic properties of the surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA).

Likely Scenarios for Influenza in 2010 and the 2010/2011 Influenza Season in Europe and the Consequent Work Priorities (ECDC) Work has been undertaken by ECDC with substantial input from its Advisory Forum, other European experts and WHO in order to inform EU stakeholders as to the likely scenarios for influenza transmission (pandemic and inter-pandemic) in Europe in the immediate future.

Characterizing the Initial Diffusion Pattern of Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 Using Surveillance Data (PLoS Currents) Using notification data, diffusion of pandemic human influenza A (H1N1) 2009 in Hong Kong was explored with geographic information system (GIS) methodology.

Biological Agents and Epidemic Diseases
Militant Claims Work on Anthrax Bomb in Afghanistan (Global Security Newswire) A suspected Taliban operative in Afghanistan claimed recently that the group was working on a bomb that would disperse anthrax, the London Daily Express reported Sunday.

How Best to Protect First Responders from Anthrax (Homeland Security Newswire) The first responders who rushed to Senator Tom Daschle's office on 15 October 2001 were protected by personal protective equipment (PPE); yet, nasal swabs taken from them after they got out of the building revealed that some had been exposed to anthrax; experts argue that first responders and emergency personnel should all be vaccinated.

Government Affairs
Obama’s C.D.C. Director, Wielding a Big Broom (New York Times) No federal health agency changed more during the Bush administration than the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Science and Biosecurity
You’re Leaving a Bacterial Fingerprint on Your Keyboard (Wired Science) The bacterial communities that live on human skin may form a bacterial fingerprint on the items that you touch.

Other 21st Century Threats
U.S. Cybercrime Losses Double (Homeland Security Newswire) U.S. Internet crime loss complaints almost doubled in value from $265 million in 2008 to reach $560 million last year, according to official figures.