DAYS OF THE COMET - AI : NEWSWIRES (2692)

[In this post: (1) South Korea. See original texts at the source sites. EDITED.]

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(1a) [AVIAN INFLUENZA, POULTRY, SOUTH KOREA] Bird flu virus differs from 2003 and 2006

May 17, 2008

The current H5N1 strain of bird flu sweeping the nation is a different variation of the virus from Korea's two previous outbreaks, a government body announced yesterday. But National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service officials said they need more time to confirm what exactly the difference is.

''We have found that this is a different H5N1 virus than that of 2003 and 2006,'' said Kim Ki-seuk, head of the team researching the virus.

''We don't yet know if this season's virus is a mutation. Also, we don't yet know if it comes from Southeast Asia. We will reveal the final result after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control finish their investigation of the current H5N1 virus sample at the end of this month.''

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sent samples to the U.S. center earlier this month.

Both of Korea's previous outbreaks of bird flu erupted during the cold of winter, but the current cases broke out during the warmer temperatures of spring, sometimes even during above 25 degree-Celsius (77 F) weather.

''At this time there is a high possibility that the virus comes from Southeast Asia,'' said an unnamed official from the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

Meanwhile, about 600 members of the Korea Poultry, Korea Duck and Korea Egg Distribution associations protested against what they see as an excessive reaction to the bird flu outbreaks in front of the organization's office in western Seoul.

They claimed that as no human infections have been confirmed in Korea, the national center is overstating the danger, leading to a downturn in consumer sentiment.

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(1b) [AVIAN INFLUENZA, POULTRY, HUMAN, SOUTH KOREA] Bird flu virus in S. Korea a type that caused no human infection: report

SEOUL, May 16 (Yonhap) --

The strain of avian influenza that broke out in South Korea this year is a type that has not caused any human infections worldwide [so far - ms.], as opposed to the kind found in Southeast Asia, the quarantine service said Friday.

The strain of bird flu that has swept the country for the past five weeks is different from those found in Indonesia and Vietnam, where the disease has been transmitted to humans, resulting in death, according to an intermediary report by the National Veterinary Research Quarantine Service.

The report also said that this year's outbreak was different from the strains that occurred in 2003 and 2006 in South Korea.

Despite culling millions of birds since early April, this year's bird flu outbreak is expected to be the worst in the country's history, with damages exceeding 100 billion won (US$95.7 million).

The disease has been reported almost nationwide, with cities including Seoul and Busan reporting cases of the dangerous H5N1 bird flu, which can be transmitted to humans. Only the southern resort island of Jeju remains unaffected.

The government has tallied 42 cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza, and 8-9 million birds have been destroyed so far.

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