The H5N1 virus (blue)

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Below is a roundup of the key developments on the spread of the bird flu virus (H5N1) and the threat it poses to human health. Each title is a link to the full article.

Click here to see the latest World Health Organization (WHO) figures of confirmed human cases.

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29th Feb – 3rd March 2008
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H5N1 vaccine 'protects against multiple virus subtypes'
A vaccine for H5N1 has shown promise in combating multiple subtypes of the virus. The vaccine, developed by GlaxoSmithKline, was designed using a Vietnamese strain, but an Asian clinical trial showed that it produces antibodies that can also neutralise a strain from Indonesia (source: Reuters).

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21st – 28th February 2008
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Vietnamese men and woman die of bird flu
The WHO has confirmed the death of a Vietnamese woman from the H5N1 virus, the country's fourth victim this year. The woman, a 23-year-old teacher from the northern Phu Tho province, is believed to have fallen ill after eating contaminated poultry. It follows the death of two men the week before, also confirmed by the WHO as H5N1 related. The first was a 40-year-old  from the northern Hai Duong province, and the second a 27-year-old from the northern province of Ninh Binh (source: Reuters)

China suffers first bird flu deaths of 2008
A 44-year-old woman from China's Guangdong province has died from H5N1 bird flu. The WHO has confirmed the death, the country's third victim this year, along with that of a 41-year-old Chinese man from the southern Guangxi region. The agency confirmed that the death of a 22-year-old man from the central province of Hunan in late January was China's first H5N1 death of the year (source: Reuters).

Indonesia resumes sample sharing with WHO
Indonesia has sent 12 H5N1 samples to the WHO-affiliated US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, United States. Indonesia stopped sharing its samples in December 2006, over concerns that drug companies might use them to create vaccines that were unaffordable for developing nations (source: Agence France Presse).

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13th – 20th February 2008
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Indonesian children die of bird flu
Two Indonesian boys have died of H5N1 bird flu, the WHO have confirmed. The victims were a three-year-old boy from South Jakarta and a 16-year-old boy from the country's central Java province. It follows the WHO-confirmed death of a 29-year-old woman from Tangerang, west of Jakarta, a week before. Indonesia's H5N1 death toll now stands at 105. (sources: Xinhua, Earthtimes, Reuters).