Chinese scientists say are closing in on the source of the country’s deadly bird flu outbreak as the first case is reported of the disease outside China’s borders.
Two reports today confirm fears that the virus has been spreading in Chinese poultry markets.
Scientists also confirm the key feature of the outbreaks – that the H7N9 virus can easily infect humans but is unlikely to pass from human to human.
So far 22 deaths and 109 cases of infection have been reported. The latest case was found in Taiwan but involved someone who had worked in Shanghai, China.
Speaking to The Lancet, Professor Kwok-Yung Yuen of the University of Hong Kong, China, said: "Overall, the evidence, in terms of epidemiology and virology, suggests that it is a pure poultry to human transmission, and that controlling the epidemic in humans will therefore depend on controlling the epidemic in poultry."
The researchers, led by Professor Lanjuan Li, of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China, call for tough action to control markets including temporary closures, careful segregation of poultry species and the introduction of vaccines for birds.
More genetic details of the virus were reported in the Chinese Science Bulletin. This suggests the virus may have originated with ducks.
During a visit to China, World Health Organisation assistant director-general Dr Keiji Fukuda said: "The risks of such an outbreak situation are shared in a globalised world where we are all interconnected. This underlines the importance of the example set by China in following the International Health Regulations."
Lancet 26 April 2013 [abstract]
Shi J Z, Deng G H, Liu P H, et al. Isolation and characterization of H7N9 viruses from live poultry markets—Implication of the source of current H7N9 infection in humans. Chin Sci Bull, 2013, 58, doi:10.1007/s11434-013-5873-4. [abstract]
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