Avian Flu Diary

Credit NIAID
#19,047
One of the more intriguing influenza discoveries of the past dozen years has been the identification of a previously unknown type of flu - Influenza D - infecting swine, cattle, and apparently even humans.

#19,046
Last week, in Taiwan: Another Avian Flu `Incident', we looked at the latest in a series (see here, here, and here) of high profile illegal (avian or swine) vaccine smuggling and/or manufacturing operations detected by Taiwanese officials.
Counterfeit vaccines are particularly worrying, since they may exacerbate existing epizootic threats, but they are far from the only imported zoonotic threats....

#19,045
NERC, or the North American Electric Reliability Corporation,  was tasked with "ensuring the reliability of the North American bulk power system" in 2006 following the 2003 Northeast blackout which affected more than 50 million people in the United States...

#19,045
Last week Taiwan's poultry industry was roiled by the discovery of thousands of H5N1 infected poultry illegally dumped or buried in locations spanning two counties (see Taiwan: The Plot Thickens . . .), while earlier this week Taiwan's APHIA announced...