The H7N9 bird flu virus isolate, which is crucial for vaccine development, yesterday arrived at a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) laboratory from China, the Central Epidemic Command Center said yesterday.
After the outbreak of the H7N9 avian influenza in China, the Taiwanese government requested the virus sample from China under the Cross-Strait Cooperation Agreement on Medicine and Public Health Affairs, the command center said.
The center said the virus isolate was delivered in accordance with international biosafety regulations, and the delivery was the first official cross-strait exchange of a pathogenic agent.
The virus sample received is A/Anhui/1/2013, so named because it was isolated from the first detected patient infected with H7N9 in Anhui Province.
The CDC laboratory will first cultivate the virus and use it to test against the existing diagnostic test kit for detecting H7N9 infections, in addition to conducting other relevant research experiments, the command center said, adding that the virus cultivation would require a biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures.
The center said it is keeping in contact with numerous agencies around the world in order to acquire the latest information on the development of a vaccine, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has agreed to share its vaccine seed strain once it has been developed.
The command center also cautioned the public against spreading false rumors about H7N9 avian influenza, citing a recent rumor on the Internet that the government was concealing a fatal H7N9 infection in Taiwan.
The spreading of such rumors is prohibited by the Communicable Disease Control Act (傳染病防治法) and the Social Order Maintenance Act (社會秩序維護法), the center said, and rumor-mongers would be subject to a fine of up to NT$500,000.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today said that if South Korea does not reply appropriately to its request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, it would take corresponding measures to alter how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. The ministry said that it changed the nationality for South Koreans on Taiwan’s Alien Resident Certificates from “Korea” to “South Korea” on March 1, in a gesture of goodwill and based on the
RSS