Utah State researchers study avian flu
With threats of the avian or bird flu spreading throughout the state, Utah State University researchers are preparing for the worst, but say a pandemic is not expected.
The flu has only been found to have transferred from animals to humans although it has the potential to mutate from human to human, said Lloyd Berentzen, director of the Bear River Health Department.
But the avian flu is a legitimate threat Berentzen said.
Utah State University has been testing vaccines for influenza for over twenty years and has also been working on a vaccine for the avian flu over the past year, said Dale Barnard, associate professor in the Animal, Dairy and Veterinary Sciences Department.
Companies submit their drugs to USU’s Institute of Antiviral Research and the researchers test them for effectiveness. About eight faculty members along with about 10 students are helping with the research.
USU has been working with various vaccines in cells to see if they prevent the virus from replicating in the cells. So far the institute has found leading avian flu vaccines such as Relenza and Tamiflu, Barnard said.
Government officials do not intend to frighten people but do encourage them to become educated about the flu, he added.
President George Bush said he wants to prepare so that if the flu does mutate into a pandemic the United States will be ready, according to an article in the Knight Ridder Tribune.
Bush has already declared that $7.1 billion will go toward the prevention of the potential pandemic. Bush also called for Congress to approve $2.8 billion to develop cell cultures and several other billions towards vaccines and various groups.
The only way that humans could receive the avian flu is if the virus overcomes the non-natural host. Humans have natural immunity to certain viruses, but if the virus over came the immunity it could possibly spread from human to human, he said.
The avian flu began infecting humans in Hong Kong in August 1997 and has become more frequent in the past years, according to the National Institute of Allergies and infectious Diseases.
This year the World Health Organization has confirmed cases of the avian influenza (H5N1) in Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia. WHO said 62 of 121 confirmed cases by October have been fatal.
In an article released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control, there is a shortage of vaccines in one of the major marketing companies, but Berentzen said plenty of general flu vaccine is available locally.
A fact sheet about the avian flu is available to the public from the Bear River Health Department Logan 655 E. 1300 North also online at www.brhd.org. ranaebang@cc.usu.edu