GERMS: December 2014

Das Rätsel um den bisher schwersten Ausbruch der Ebola-Seuche (mehr als 7500 Tote) ist offenbar gelöst.

Deutsche Wissenschaftler sicher: Fledermäuse haben Ebola übertragen - News Ausland - Bild.de

Ebola czar Ron Klain on Sunday defended the Centers for Disease Control’s response to the Ebola crisis, even as he criticized this week’s mishandling of a virus sample that exposed a technician to the disease.

Ebola czar: Mishandling of samples ‘unacceptable’ | TheHill

KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) -

Thousands of cases of influenza have been reported in Kansas and Missouri as the flu is raging across the country especially in the Midwest and South. A particularly virulent strain of influenza type A has sickened many, and the majority of flu shots weren't geared to cover the strain. Two-thirds of the flu cases being seen across the country weren't covered by the strains included in the flu shot.

TOPEKA, Kan. —A new virus thought to be carried by ticks or other insects has been discovered following the death of a southeast Kansas resident during the summer, public health officials said Monday.

The new virus is called Bourbon virus, after Bourbon County, home of the patient who died. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment said the patient's symptoms, including fever and fatigue, were similar to symptoms from other tick-borne diseases.

Kansas says new virus found after resident's death | Local News - KMBC Home

From USDA:

Posted by Benjamin Williams, Project Manager, International Services, on December 23, 2014 at 11:06 AM

Course participants practice swabbing wild ducks for diagnostic sampling

Protecting agriculture is nothing new for USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), who is on the job 24/7 keeping livestock safe from animal disease. APHIS is sharing that expertise internationally to help countries protect livestock and threatened and endangered species from diseases like brucellosis, tuberculosis, avian influenza, bluetongue and rabies. APHIS, with help from the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), held a new training course specifically focused on wildlife disease issues. APHIS recently hosted wildlife disease specialists from all over the world, including Cambodia, Kenya, Mexico, Tanzania, Uganda, and Vietnam.

All of APHIS’ capacity building programs are designed to identify and reduce agricultural pest and disease threats while these threats are still outside of U.S. borders. Capacity building includes training and technology transfer to assist foreign partners in building their animal and plant health infrastructures. This capability, in turn, helps to reduce the chances that undetected agricultural threats will find pathways into the United States.

Dr. Charles Masembe, of Makerere University in Uganda, offered insights into feral swine surveillance activities in Uganda at the November training. “This course was a great opportunity to work with our counterparts at USDA and review materials on wildlife disease control. We’ll bring these materials back to our offices to share with our colleagues and promote safe practices in agricultural health and wildlife disease monitoring and research,” said Dr. Masembe.

Highlights of the wildlife disease course included a darting demonstration and an overview of avian trapping techniques. Lectures covered wildlife disease management issues and how wildlife diseases impact domestic livestock. Participants also conducted a disease outbreak simulation where they practiced diagnostic sampling techniques and biosafety and biosecurity protocols. The simulation used glow powder, which was only visible under black light to mimic pathogen exposure. At the end of the simulation instructors checked the participants with a black light to determine whether they were exposed to any of the glow powder while they practiced sampling techniques.

The course was held in Fort Collins, Colorado at APHIS’ National Wildlife Research Center and Colorado State University where participants worked side-by-side with U.S. subject matter experts on wildlife pests and diseases.

The Wildlife Disease Course is just one of many APHIS international capacity building activities. These activities promote science-based approaches to animal and plant health problems around the world. Capacity building training programs foster safe agricultural trade and help the US to maintain relationships with other countries and international organizations. Requests for APHIS expertise or technical assistance include topics such as veterinary epidemiology, regulatory processes and policy, wildlife control and surveillance, pest risk assessment, biotechnology, laboratory diagnostics, transboundary animal diseases, and other aspects of animal and plant health.

From the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS):

Avian flu, or "bird flu," is in #Washington state. There is no public health concern at this time.

Following a recent wild bird die-off at Wiser Lake, the#USGS identified highly pathogenic avian flu in samples from Whatcom County, Washington. Two strains of the virus are now confirmed: H5N2 in northern pintail ducks and H5N8 in captive gyrfalcons that were fed hunter-killed wild birds. Neither virus has been found in U.S. commercial poultry.

Read about the current situation athttp://on.doi.gov/13gk0Uw. General information about avian influenza is available at http://on.doi.gov/1iTCjQf.

Photo: A male northern pintail duck. (Credit: USGS)

Now, for a little humor...

Video (1:56)

Should You Sit on Public Toilets? - YouTube

British medical expert Jeremy Farrar is a key figure in the fight against Ebola and other infectious diseases. In a SPIEGEL interview, he says that the development of vaccines is key because drug-resistant viruses and bacteria pose immense dangers.

Infectious Disease Expert Jeremy Farrar on Ebola Epidemic - SPIEGEL ONLINE

IBM's SoftLayer cloud-enabled World Community Grid to provide free virtual supercomputer power to The Scripps Research Institute to speed screening of promising chemical compounds

IBM News room - 2014-12-03 Volunteers Can Now Help Scripps Research Institute Scientists Seek Ebola Cure in Their (Computers') Spare Time - United States

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