Donors meeting nets funds for avian flu fight (Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy) Oct 27, 2008 (CIDRAP News) – A group of international donors who met yesterday in the final session of an avian influenza conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, pledged more support for avian and pandemic flu preparedness and prevention, led by $320 million from the United States. [News Source]

US pledges extra $320 million for bird flu fight. The United States pledged an additional $320 million to the global fight against bird flu and warned on Saturday against complacency in combating the virus, which could mutate and cause a deadly pandemic. [News Source]

Nasty jab against bird flu research (Bangkok Post – Thailand’s English news) Health ministers from most of the world gathered this past weekend in Egypt to plan against bird flu, with the United Nations saying the threat of a deadly global pandemic is as high as ever and a future vaccine as important as ever. [News Source]

Genetic evidence for avian influenza movement from Asia to North America via wild birds (EurekAlert!) ( United States Geological Survey ) Wild migratory birds may be more important carriers of avian influenza viruses from continent to continent than previously thought, according to new scientific research that has important implications for highly pathogenic avian influenza virus surveillance in North America. [News Source]

Genetics Provide Evidence for the Movement of Avian Influenza Viruses from Asia to North America via Migratory Birds (USGS) Editors: Please see this press release at the USGS Newsroom for downloadable, copyright-free photos: http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/ Wild migratory birds may be more important carriers of avian influenza viruses from continent to continent than previously thought, according to new scientific research that has important implications for highly pathogenic avian influenza virus surveillance ... [News Source]

Egypt: Country Has Lowest Human Death Rate of Avian Flu-Affected Nations (AllAfrica.com) The Ministry of Health in Egypt, one of six countries where highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has become well-established, has worked to slash the time it takes for avian flu victims to be treated, giving Egypt the lowest fatality rate for H5N1 of any affected nation in the world. [News Source]

GLOBAL: No room for complacency about bird flu – experts (AlertNet) Source: IRIN Some success has been achieved in reducing avian influenza outbreaks in poultry and humans, but the world must still be prepared to tackle an influenza pandemic, experts at an international conference in Egypt have said. [News Source]

Avian Flu Threat: New Approach Needed (Science Daily) As the first globally co-ordinated plan for the planet's gravest health threats is hatched by government ministers from around the world this weekend, a new report sets out a 10-point plan for a globalized approach to infectious diseases such as avian flu. [News Source]