Avian Flu Scan for Jan 07, 2016

News brief

China reports new H5N6 case, also in Guangdong province

Three of the world's seven human cases of H5N6 have now been reported in the past 10 days, with Hong Kong's Centre for Health Protection (CHP) reporting a new case today, following cases on Dec 29 and Jan 4.

Today's case involves a 25-year-old man in Shenzhen in Guangdong province, which borders Hong Kong. The man is hospitalized in serious condition, the CHP said. The previous two patients, both women, were also from Guangdong, with one in Shenzhen and one in Zhaoqing, about 100 miles to the northwest.

The woman from Shenzhen, age 26, died from the disease, while the one in Zhaoqing, age 40, is in critical condition. The agency did not say whether the two Shenzhen cases are linked.

All seven H5N6 cases have been in China, with the first confirmed in May 2014.
Jan 7 CHP statement

Avian flu outbreaks affect thousands of poultry in France, Nigeria

France's Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) reported its 67th outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) today, while Nigeria reported a large H5N1 HPAI outbreak that began last month.

The French outbreak involves a farm of 10,000 chickens and 4,000 ducks in the town of Gabat in thePyrenees Atlantiques region, the first outbreak there since Dec 20, according to an MOA report translated and posted today on Avian Flu Diary, an infectious disease blog. The exact avian flu strain was not specified.

All 67 outbreaks of H5N1, H5N2, and H5N9 HPAI have been in southwestern France. The first was confirmed in November.

In Nigeria, H5N1 struck a farm of 120,000 laying hens in Enugu state in the south, according to a report by Nigerian veterinary officials filed with the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE). The virus killed 25,000 birds, and the rest were euthanized to prevent disease spread.

The outbreak began on Nov 18 and tests confirmed H5N1 on Dec 31, but the event was not reported to the OIE till Jan 5. Control measures such as controlling the movement of poultry in the area and disinfecting the premises have been implemented.
Jan 7 Avian Flu Diary post
Jan 5 OIE report

News Scan for Jan 07, 2016

News brief

Army begins phase 2 trial of Johnson & Johnson's prime-boost Ebola vaccine

Johnson & Johnson's prime-boost Ebola vaccine regimen is entering phase 2 clinical trials in both healthy and HIV-infected people, the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) announced yesterday in a press release.

This trial involves two vaccine candidates, a priming dose of Ad26.ZEBOV from Crucell Holland B.V., one of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, and a booster dose of MVA-BN-Filo from Bavarian Nordic. Phase 2 trials assess vaccine safety and immune response.

The study will include 75 adults up to age 70 who will receive the vaccines at the WRAIR Clinical Trials Center in Silver Spring, Md. Early next year, WRAIR-affiliated sites in Africa will also begin evaluating the regimen, as well as a vaccination schedule that flips the order of the two vaccines.

Some of the volunteers are HIV-positive because they represent people who might benefit from a preventive Ebola vaccine in Africa. "It's an important consideration given that both of these viruses can be present in the same communities," said Col. Nelson Michael, MD, PhD, director, of the US Military HIV Research Program.
Jan 6 WRAIR press release

Modest flu vaccine effectiveness found in early New Zealand data

Preliminary data in New Zealand found 36% flu vaccine effectiveness (VE) in preventing primary care visits for influenza-like illness (ILI) and 50% against hospitalizations for severe acute respiratory infection (SARI), according to a report today in Eurosurveillance.

The study included 1,197 outpatients with ILI and 754 hospitalized patients with SARI from Apr 27 to Sep 26, the Southern Hemisphere's flu season, in Auckland. Among those with ILI, 573 tested positive for influenza by polymerase chain reaction (93 of whom were vaccinated), compared with 180 of the SARI patients, of whom 47 had received flu vaccination.

Using a case test-negative design, the researchers found a 36% VE in the ILI patients and a 50% VE in the SARI patients. VE against hospitalized H3N2 was 53%, which was higher than previous season, the authors reported.

They concluded, "We are encouraged by our interim observation of positive VE point estimates for influenza A (H3N2) virus-associated ILI (22%; 95% CI [confidence interval]: −23 to 51) and SARI (53%; 95% CI: 6–76), which may indicate that VE improved with the change in [H3N2] vaccine strain."
Jan 7 Eurosurveillance study