Recent News

By Region: Europe

Bird flu viruses could re-emerge in upcoming flu season

(FAO) FAO has issued a new warning to the international community that the H7N9 and H5N1 avian influenza viruses continue to pose serious threats to human and animal health, especially in view of the upcoming flu season. “The world is more prepared than ever before to respond to bird flu viruses in light of a Read More »

September 16, 2013
| Filed under Asia/Pacific, Europe, North America, South America, International, and Public Health
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CDC warns of complacency on global health issues

(WashingtonTimes) America is facing a “perfect storm of vulnerability” for exposure to infectious diseases, making public health efforts more important than ever, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned Tuesday. “There is in some quarters a sense that public health is less and less relevant,” CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden said Read More »

September 11, 2013
| Filed under Asia/Pacific, Europe, Middle East, North America, South America, and Public Health
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Vanderbilt advances bird flu research using controversial sequences

(TheTennesseean) Researchers at Vanderbilt University have determined that an existing, experimental vaccine would work should a deadly bird flu virus mutate to the point it becomes contagious between people. Controversial data on how to build the deadly virus published in scientific journals enabled researchers to show that human antibodies can kill it. Their findings on Read More »

September 11, 2013
| Filed under Asia/Pacific, Europe, North America, and Research
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Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) – update

(WHO) WHO has been informed of four (4) additional laboratory-confirmed cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection in Saudi Arabia. The first case is a 41 year-old female healthcare worker from Riyadh with no known underlying medical conditions and who became ill on 15 August, 2013. Her condition deteriorated and she passed away Read More »

September 10, 2013
| Filed under Europe, Middle East, North America, International, and Public Health
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Syria’s neighbours fear biological weapons attack

(Telegraph) While the world has focused on Syria’s stockpiles of chemical weapons, Middle Eastern intelligence agencies have growing concerns about the country’s biological arsenal, according to the Washington Post. Hafez al-Assad, the father of Bashar, initiated the country’s research into biological weapons while president in the 1980s and the current regime is thought to have Read More »