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December 06, 2002
INTERNATIONAL IMMUNIZATION NEWS
"Hong Kong Researchers Say They've Unraveled Some of Deadly Bird Flu
Mystery"
Associated Press (www.ap.org) (12/06/02)
University of Hong Kong researchers report that a strain of avian
influenza, which killed six people in Hong Kong in 1997 and caused the
slaughter of 1 million chickens, became deadly to humans by disrupting a
victim's immune system, according to the university's Malik Peiris. The
study, to be published in Saturday's issue of The Lancet, found that the
avian influenza caused an overproduction of the cytokine TNF-alpha, which
threw patients' immune systems out of balance. Hong Kong is protecting
itself against more avian influenza outbreaks with more stringent hygiene
control for its poultry dealers.
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