Archive for Week of December 28, 2009

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

December 28 | December 29 | December 30

December 30, 2009
 

2009 H1N1 Influenza
Household Responses to Pandemic (H1N1) 2009–Related School Closures, Perth, Western Australia (Emerging Infectious Diseases) School closure is often purported to reduce influenza transmission, but little is known about its effect on families. We surveyed families affected by pandemic (H1N1) 2009–related school closures in Perth, Western Australia, Australia. Surveys were returned for 233 (58%) of 402 students.

Employment and Compliance with Pandemic Influenza Mitigation Recommendations (Emerging Infectious Diseases) In the event of a serious pandemic influenza outbreak, businesses must play a key role in protecting employees' health and safety.

Biological Agents and Epidemic Diseases
New Hampshire Probes GI Anthrax Case (CIDRAP News) Health officials in New Hampshire are investigating whether a woman who is ill with gastrointestinal (GI) anthrax contracted the potentially deadly infection at a drum circle gathering in Durham, N.H.

Countermeasures
CDC’s Chempack Project: Nerve Agent Antidote Storage (HHS Office of Inspector General) In 2004, CDC established the CHEMPACK project as part of an approximately $3.5-billion Federal Strategic National Stockpile of drugs and medical supplies to assist States in protecting communities against the potentially deadly effects of chemical agents that attack the human nervous system (i.e., nerve agents).

A Novel Type of Influenza Vaccine: Safety and Immunogenicity of Replication‐Deficient Influenza Virus Created by Deletion of the Interferon Antagonist NS1 (Journal of Infectious Diseases) The nonstructural protein NS1 of influenza virus counteracts the interferon‐mediated immune response of the host. By deleting the open reading frame of NS1, we have generated a novel type of influenza vaccine.

Science and Biosecurity
Synthetic Gene Firms Get Ahead of Government on Security (GenomeWeb News) Synthetic biology companies and the US government appear to share many of the same ideas about measures that should be taken to keep potentially dangerous synthesized gene sequences out of the hands of bioterrorists.

Chlorophylls Effective Against Aflatoxin (e! Science News) A new study has found that chlorophyll and its derivative chlorophyllin are effective in limiting the absorption of aflatoxin in humans. Aflatoxin is produced by a fungus that is a contaminant of grains including corn, peanuts and soybeans; it is known to cause liver cancer – and can work in concert with other health concerns, such as hepatitis.

Dominant Chemical That Attracts Mosquitoes to Humans Identified (ScienceDaily) Scientists at the University of California, Davis, have identified the dominant odor naturally produced in humans and birds that attracts the blood-feeding Culex mosquitoes, which transmit West Nile virus and other life-threatening diseases.

Other 21st Century Threats
Losses from Climate Change Disasters to Rise, Munich Re Says (Bloomberg) Losses from natural catastrophes caused by climate change will rise in the future, making the lack of a breakthrough at the Copenhagen summit this month “very disappointing,” German reinsurer Munich Re said.
    

The Biosecurity News in Brief will not be published on Thursday, December 31 or Friday, January 1. Happy New Year from the editors and staff of the BNIB.

December 29, 2009
     

2009 H1N1 Influenza
ECDC Daily Update: 2009 Influenza A (H1N1) Pandemic (ECDC) This report is based on official information provided by national public health websites or through other official communication channels.

Oseltamivir- and Amantadine-Resistant Influenza Virus A (H1N1) (Emerging Infectious Diseases) We previously reported detection of double resistance to oseltamivir and amantadine of influenza virus A (H1N1) in Hong Kong during the first half of 2008.

H1N1 Pandemic Poses Big Communications Challenge for Global Health Agency: Chan (Canadian Press) For the director general of the World Health Organization, the best news of the decade is the fact that the first influenza pandemic of the 21st century is a moderate - some would even call it mild - one.

WHO Chief: Swine Flu Pandemic Continues (AP/Yahoo! News) It is too early to declare that the swine flu pandemic has peaked worldwide and many more people could become sick with the virus this winter, the head of the World Health Organization said in an interview published Tuesday.

Biological Agents and Epidemic Diseases
China SARS Victims Suffer Hormone Treatment Effects-Paper (Reuters) About 300 survivors of a deadly outbreak of SARS in China in 2003 are now suffering from serious after-effects, possibly due to aggressive hormone treatment to save their lives, the Beijing News said on Friday.

22 Dead from Measles in Zimbabwe (CNN World) Twenty-two people, mainly children below the age of 5, have died of measles in Zimbabwe, the country's state media reported.

National Security
The President Addresses the Public on the Attempted Terrorist Attack (whitehouse.gov) Earlier today, the President addressed the public on the recent attempted terrorist attack.

Science and Biosecurity
Pressure Rises to Stop Antibiotics in Agriculture (AP/Yahoo! News) The mystery started the day farmer Russ Kremer got between a jealous boar and a sow in heat.
    

December 28, 2009
      

2009 H1N1 Influenza
Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 - Update 80 (WHO) As of 20 December 2009, worldwide more than 208 countries and overseas territories or communities have reported laboratory confirmed cases of pandemic influenza H1N1 2009, including at least 11516 deaths.

Impact of Seasonal Influenza-Related School Closures on Families --- Southeastern Kentucky, February 2008 (MMWR) During influenza epidemics, little is known about how influenza-related school closures affect families (1--6). Many children meet nutritional needs through school food programs (7), and schools provide child care both during and after school.

Intent to Receive Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent and Seasonal Influenza Vaccines --- Two Counties, North Carolina, August 2009 (MMWR) On September 15, 2009, the Food and Drug Administration approved the manufacture of four influenza A (H1N1) 2009 monovalent vaccines.

Pediatric Hospitalizations Associated with 2009 Pandemic Influenza A (H1N1) in Argentina (NEJM) While the Northern Hemisphere experiences the effects of the 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) virus, data from the recent influenza season in the Southern Hemisphere can provide important information on the burden of disease in children.

Biological Agents and Epidemic Diseases
First Case of Highly Drug-Resistant TB Found in US (AP/Yahoo! News) It started with a cough, an autumn hack that refused to go away. Then came the fevers. They bathed and chilled the skinny frame of Oswaldo Juarez, a 19-year-old Peruvian visiting to study English.

Public Health Preparedness and Response
In a Pandemic Best Go Digital (Medical News TODAY) The use of a digital checklist for patients being administered emergency drugs during a pandemic or following a biological terrorist attack reduces the fatigue factor, according to a report in the International Journal of Healthcare Technology and Management, and could save lives.

Other 21st Century Threats
Recasting NATO’s Strategic Concept: Possible Directions for the United States (RAND) To address its security challenges, the United States needs the active support of its allies. This means, in particular, ensuring that the states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) remain able and willing to make a contribution to resolving their common security problems wherever possible.