Bird flu virus spreads to six South Sulawesi regencies

Bird Flu Virus Spreads

Avian flu outbreak has affected six South Sulawesi regencies, where 18,000 chickens have died suddenly.

Head of the provincial husbandry agency Murtala Ali said on Thursday the infection had spread across the regencies of East Luwu, North Luwu, Pinrang, Soppeng, Sidenreng Rappang and Bone since September. He added that infection also was also reported in Barru regency.

Murtala said the first case of infection was found in East Luwu.and quickly affected the neighboring regency of North Luwu. The local authorities were forced to cull some of the chickens in order not to infect other fowls.

The agency has also sprayed disinfectant and conduct vaccination in areas where infection was found.

Murtala said the changing weather pattern was likely blamed for revival of the bird flu virus.

“The virus’ survival is very much dependant on the weather. This extreme change of weather may have triggered the outbreak,” Murtala said, adding that the high mobility of chickens had accelerated the spread of the virus.

Meanwhile, four people who were admitted to Wahidin Sudirohusodo Hospital in Makassar on Sept. 29 for displaying symptoms of bird flu infection have all tested negative for the virus.

General affairs director of the hospital Kalsum Patonangi said Thursday the four patients had been discharged.

New Mechanism of Bird Flu Virus Transmission

Scientists Discover

A new way of avian influenza circulation and transmission has been discovered by American researchers.

Led by Mauro Delogu, virologist from the Veterinary Faculty of the Bologna University and researchers from the Istituto Superiore di Sanita, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell'Emilia and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (Memphis, Tennessee), the study offers new insights into ecology, surveillance and prevention strategies of avian influenza viruses (AIVs).

And the research could ultimately be important in the fight against influenza.

The scientists actually discovered that the preen oil gland secretions, by which all aquatic birds make their feathers waterproof, support a natural mechanism that concentrates AIVs from water onto birds' bodies.

They found that a progressive virus "sticking" on feathers occurs because AIV-contaminated waters interact with the preen oil gland secretion.

Since waterbirds use to spread preen oil over their own (self-preening) or other birds' (allo-preening) plumage, it is easily understandable how these preening activities could facilitate the diffusion of the viruses in nature.

The discovery has also important implications in the surveillance of avian influenza viruses, added Delogu.

In fact, virus on feathers could escape detection by the current surveillance strategies, which assay the virus secreted in the cloacal and tracheal samples only.

Lack of detection of these viruses may greatly complicate surveillance and rapid responses to new virus emergence and spread.

For this reason in routine surveillance programs, additional sampling methods could be necessary to detect AIVs on birds' bodies, said Delogu.