27.07.2009: Get the H1N1 Flu, it is good for you and it is for free
Do not wory about the H1N1. This flu is mild and updates your immune system. Reacting against the virus you build up immunity against any other virulent H1N1 mutations.. Our society exchanges continuously bacteria, viruses and parasites through water, air, food, dust and direct contact. Our natural defences cope with pathogens.

The WHO, governments and health officials panic and make reckless decisions spending money desperately needed in health care and combat other deadly epidemics like Tb, cancer, cardiovascular diseases or stroke. They should let the virus do its job and boost the immune system of the population.

Being a weedy person you can, however protect yourself  cancelling your trip to Mexico, USA Spain and UK. But if you are strong, standing on both your feet, do not be afraid to get the H1N1 flu. Your body can manage that and gets fit for the next virus epidemic. Give the government, the health departments and the pharmaceutical industry the cold shoulder. Say NO to vaccine and Tamiflu.

27.07.2009: Importance of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in water manegement
From approximately 40 names of Giardia spp only five to six morphologically distinct species are recognised. Giardia lamblia (=G. intestinalis, =G. duodenalis) infect humans and other mammals, Giardia muris is found from other mammals, Giardia ardeae and Giardia psittaci from birds, Giardia agilis from amphibians and Giardia microti from voles. Recent studies demonstrated genetic heterogeneity among Giardia isolates and brought a better understanding of the role of wild and domestic animals as sources of human infection. [1]

Genotypes of Giardia duodenalis [2]
According to Caccio and Rian there are seven genetic groups within the species Giardia duodenalis identified by molecular assays. The groups A and B are found in both humans and animals, and the remaining groups C to G are host-specific. Sequence-based surveys have identified a number of genotypes within assemblages A and B in animal species which may be infectious to humans.

Giardia and Cryptosporidium
Giardia and Cryptosporidium are common enteric parasites of domestic animals, particularly dogs, cats and livestock. The epidemiology of infections was recently cleared using molecular epidemiological. [3]

These data support the hypothesis that Cryptosporidium hominis is spread only between humans. However domestic livestock, predominantly cattle is reservoir for Cryptosporidium parvum. Transmission takes place by direct contact with infected cattle but also indirectly through drinking water. Giardia duodenalis zoonotic transmission is not considered as a major risk for human infections. [4]

Cryptosporidium has become the most important contaminant found in drinking water, and 12 waterborne outbreaks in North America since 1985 with a mortality rate in the immunocompromised the ranged from 52% to 68%. The immunofluorescence antibody assay (IFA) using epifluorescence microscopy has been used to examine the occurrence of Cryptosporidium in sewage. [5]

O'Handley and Olson 2009 describe the effects of giardiasis and cryptosporidiosis in ruminats. The authors report that Giardia duodenalis infections are acquired during the first few months of life, tend to be chronic, and may be a production-limiting disease of ruminants. Cryptosporidia parvum infections causes diarrhoea in neonatal ruminants and Cryptosporidia andersoni, is seen as an emerging disease of cattle. [6]

Giardia and Cryptosporidium spp agents of waterborne diseases [7]
Brandonisio 2006 stresses that Giardia and Cryptosporidium spp. are parasitic protozoa which are frequent etiologic agents of waterborne diseases, particularly in Italy The author reviews current methods for evaluating the presence of Giardia cysts and Cryptosporidium oocysts in water and new methods for cyst/oocyst removal from drinking water and wastewater.

The resistant stages produced by Cryptosporidium and Giardia (oocysts and cysts, respectively) are remarkably stable, and can survive for weeks to months in the environment. The infective dose is low, even a single oocyst or cyst may cause an infection. Most faeces that contain (oo)cysts end up in the environment and can be spread to foods by irrigation or by direct contact, and can persist in the water, as routine treatments eliminate only a fraction of these stages. [11]

Smith and Nichols 2006 refer to the reasons why outbreaks of water- and foodborne diseases caused by Cryptosporidium, Giardia and Toxoplasma are successful. They are pathogen for many hosts including man and have a low infectious dose their infectious stages are small and resistant to the linking media, and they resistant to usual water disinfectants. The authors also refers to infection of humans by the microsporidia, Balantidium and Blastocystis being transported by food and water. [8]

Fayer, Dubey and Lindsay 2004 drawed attention upon Giardia, Cryptosporidium, Toxoplasma and the worldwide pollution of coastal marine environment when great amounts of feces from humans, their pets, and their domesticated animals enter estuaries and coastal waters. The authors stress that sewage carries encysted zoonotic protozoan parasites contaminating bathing beaches, are filtered and concentrated by shellfish eaten by humans and marine mammals, and infect a wide range of marine animal hosts. [9]

Appelbee and colleagues looked at the diversity of free-living and captive terrestrial and marine mammalian wildlife species infected with Giardia and Cryptosporidium. The authors highlight the importance of environmental pollution with human and domestic-animal fecal material as a pathway for wildlife infections with protozoan parasites such as Giardia and Cryptosporidium. Molecular-genotyping techniques offer deeper insights to host specificity and possible transmission routes of these parasites. [10]

Methods for the diagnosis of Cryptosporidium and Giardia [11]
Caccion 2004 highlights the necessity of the accurate identification of a parasite at the species and/or genotype level in human and veterinary parasitology, including the diagnosis, the taxonomy, the treatment and the control. Giardia and cryptosporidium, despite differing in biology, share a complex series of transmission routes turning molecular assays very useful to clarifie their epidemiology.
The author stresses that PCR does not provide information on the viability and infectivity of the pathogen. These informations may be obtained using indirect methods, such as inclusion/exclusion assays using vital dyes or the Reverse-Transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) RT which usually targets the heat shock protein (hsp) 70 gene. Heat shock proteins hsps are efficiently formed by stressed organisms, such as (oo)cysts exposed to a thermal shock. The hsps wehich are formed under such conditions increase the detection sensitivity and are an index of viability of the cysts.

The real-time PCR allows the continuous monitoring of amplicon which are pieces of DNA formed during the amplification reaction, quantitative aspect of the infection could be studied with exquisite sensitivity.

Molecular characterization of Giardia duodenalis and Cryptosporidium spp [12]
A high prevalence of G. duodenalis of 42.0%, Cryptosporidium parvum 21.7% and Cryptosporidium bovis 1,4% was found by Coklin and colleagues 2007 in Canadian cattle in Ontario. Mainly calves were affected. Molecular characterization of the genotypes confirmed a frequent infestation of humans by these parasites.
Methodology used by the authors: Following DNA extractions from faecal samples, nested-PCR protocols were used to amplify fragments of the 16S rRNA gene and the heat-shock protein 70 (HSP-70) gene for determining the prevalence of G. duodenalis and Cryptosporidium spp. infections, respectively. Genotypes of G. duodenalis, and species of Cryptosporidium, were determined by means of DNA sequencing of amplicons, and subsequent sequence alignment.

The authors concluded that there risk of transmission of Giardia duodenalis and Cryptosporidium parvum between cattle and humans by contaminated water or food, or direct faecal-oral transmission.

In 2009 Coklin and colleagues found 6.2% infections of Cryptosporidium parvum in dairy calves in Prince Edward Island, Canada. The authors stress the potential risk of zoonotic transmission between dairy calves and humans in this region.The presence of oocysts in the fecal samples was determined , using immunofluorescence microscopy. Molecular characterization was done using a nested-PCR protocol to amplify fragments of the Cryptosporidium heat-shock protein 70 gene, followed by DNA sequencing. [13]

New sub-genotype of Cryptosporidium parvum [14]
In cattle from the Qazvin province , Iran 72.6% of the positive samples as Cryptosporidium parvum, 17.7% as Cryptosporidium andersoni, 7.8% as Cryptosporidium bovis. were found by Keshavarz and colleagues. The authors report the finding of a novel genotype of C. parvum possessing a single mutation on MboII restriction. This new sub-genotype represented 1.9% of the analysed samples. The authors used microscopic characterization and ocysts were analyzed using PCR assay of 18S SSU rRNA, restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and sequencing.

In Teheran Pirestani and colleagues 2007 found a zoonotic or 2 genotype (C. parvum) in isolates from bovine samples. In human samples anthroponotic or 1 (C. hominis) and zoonotic genotype or 2 (C. parvum) were found. Ooicysts were isolated and genotyped by means of a Nested-polymerase chain reaction/restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of the 18s rRNA gene [15].

Eastwood and colleagues 2008 identified two subgenotypes of Cryptosporidium hominis and four subgenotypes of Cryptosporidium parvum species from humans from farms in New South Wales. All four of the C. parvum subtypes found in humans were also found in the cattle. This suggests that zoonotic transmission is an important factor of Cryptosporidium transmission in rural regions.
PCR sequence analysis of the 18S rRNA was used to determine species/genotype and subgenotype by sequence analysis of the GP60 gene [16].

Geurden and colleagues 2009 report that Cryptosporidium and Giardia are frequently found in the stool of domestic ruminants, especially young animals. The authors assessed the occurrence of these protozoan in captive wild ruminats at the Antwerp Zoo (Belgium) where 8.9 % for Giardia duodenalis assemblage A and American bison (Bison bison) calves on a commercial breeding farm and 23.2% for Giardia duodenalis assemblage A and E.
Cryptosporidium-positive cases were 7.5% in the Antwerp Zoo animals and 3.7% in the Bisons from the breeding farm. The authors concluded that captive wild ruminants can serve as reservoir Cryptosporidium and Giardia. Detailed methodology is described by the authors. [17]

Solar UV inactivates Cryptosporidium oocysts [18]
King and colleagues 2008 found that natural sunlight inactivated up to 90% of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts in drinking water and environmental waters within the first hour. The solar ultraviolet UV-B wawelength had the highest germicidal effect, whereas dissolved organic material decreased the effect of solar light.

Water treatments to control Cryptosporidium and Giardia [19]
Betancourt and Rose 2004 report that Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts are particularly more resistant than Giardia lamblia cysts to removal and inactivation by conventional water treatment (coagulation, sedimentation, filtration and chlorine disinfection). Success of conventional treatment depends on the effectiveness of coagulation pretreatment and properly functioning conventional filters. Additional disinfection procedures, such as chlorination, chlorine dioxide, ozonation and ultra violet [UV] irradiation) disinfection procedures by chemical or physical methods are required.

The effectiveness of inactivation of protozoan parasites in food, water and environment [20]
According to Erickson and Ortega 2006 treatments used to inactivate protozoan parasites (Giardia, Cryptosporidium, and Cyclospora) in food, water, and environmental systems include freezing, heating, filtration, sedimentation, UV light, irradiation, high pressure, and ultrasound. The authors stress that ozone is a more effective than chlorine or chlorine dioxide. However, one should have in mind that synergistic effects of sequential inactivation treatments of conventional systems may increase their efficiency.

Effect of temperature on the die-off rate for Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts in water, soils, and feces [21]
Oocysts survival in water: Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts are inactivated when exposed to a temperature of 72.4°C for 1 min or 64.2°C for more than 2 min. The lowest die-off rate was found at 4°C. Freezingt is predicted to inactivate 99.99% of oocysts in 853 days at –4°C or 64 days at –22°C.

The die-off rate for oocysts in river water at 5°C is similar to that in autoclaved river water, but at 15°C, oocyst die-off occurs more rapidly in natural than in autoclaved river water. The difference is perhaps due to increased biological or biochemical activity at 15°C.

Oocysts survival in soil: Desiccation is probably lethal to oocysts . Reports say that decreasing the soil water potential by adjusting NaCl solution linearly increases the rate of population degradation.

Oocysts survival in faecis: Temperature is a key factor influencing oocyst survival in feces. A strong exponential relationship between the die-off rate and the temperature was found, being stronger in faeces than in water. The viability of oocysts excreted by calves in solar housing did no differ from those in conventional housing.

Giardia canis virus as genetic tool to alter Giardia canis
Chen and colleagues 2006 described the cultivation of Giardia canis trophozoites infected with Giardia canis virus. [22] Chen and colleagues 2009 explain the structure of this virus and its effects on Giardia canis trophozoites being released to the media as mature infectious viral particles. The authors suggest that Giardia canis virus may be used for gene manipulation of Giardia canis. [23]

Sewage treatment [24]
According to Arthurson 2007 sewage sludge intended for arable land use needs to be rigorously assessed for quality due to the high content of metals (cadmium, arsenic, copper, lead, mercury, and zinc), persistent organic pollutants (the organochlorines aldrin, dieldrin, heptachlor, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, and lindane), and pathogenic microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and helminths) to ensure no transmission of harmful elements to humans through entry into the food chain via crops or grazing animals. According to European Union regulations (EEC 1774/2002) [25], stabilized organic residues must be adequately treated and proven hygienically safe, prior to the application of sewage sludge to arable land.

Storage of Sewage: According to the authors storage of sewage sludge was applied as the sole treatment, with the aim of sanitization in terms of destroying pathogenic microorganisms, a method proven not effective and therefore discontinued. The most frequently used stabilization methods for sewage sludge are biological anaerobic and aerobic digestion. However, neither of these two procedures generates sludge that is better quality than class B grade, promoting a future shift to the use of alternative methods, such as alkaline stabilization and heat drying, to further reduce pathogen levels, resulting in class A sludge with fewer user restrictions. An additional promising option of producing hygienically safe material for arable recycling is to combine stabilization procedures, such as digestion, with pasteurization or liquid composting.

Chemical treatment: Lime stabilization (calcium hydroxide) to raise the pH to 12.0 for at least 2 hours. It is an interesting alternative to anaerobic and aerobic digestion.
Composting; In composting, liquid sludge is treated with a bulking agent, such as wood chips, dry compost, or municipal refuse.
Pasteurization: Pasteurization of biowaste at 70°C for at least 1 h is an effective approach to eliminate most pathogens.

[1] Monis PT, Caccio SM, Thompson RC.: Variation in Giardia: towards a taxonomic revision of the genus. Trends Parasitol. 2009 Feb;25(2):93-100. Epub 2009 Jan 8.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19135417

[2] Cacciò SM, Ryan U.: Molecular epidemiology of giardiasis. Mol Biochem Parasitol. 2008 Aug;160(2):75-80. Epub 2008 May 5.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18501440

[3] Thompson RC, Palmer CS, O'Handley R.The public health and clinical significance of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in domestic animals. Vet J. 2008 Jul;177(1):18-25. Epub 2007 Nov 26.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18032076

[4] Hunter PR, Thompson RC.: The zoonotic transmission of Giardia and Cryptosporidium.
Int J Parasitol. 2005 Oct;35(11-12):1181-90.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16159658

[5] Rose JB.: Environmental ecology of Cryptosporidium and public health implications.
Annu Rev Public Health. 1997;18:135-61.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9143715

[6] O'Handley RM, Olson ME.: Giardiasis and cryptosporidiosis in ruminants. Vet Clin North Am Food Anim Pract. 2006 Nov;22(3):623-43.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17071357

[7] Brandonisio O.: Waterborne transmission of Giardia and Cryptosporidium. Parassitologia. 2006 Jun;48(1-2):91-4.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16881405

[8] Smith H, Nichols RA.: Zoonotic protozoa-food for thought. Parassitologia. 2006 Jun;48(1-2):101-4
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16881407

[9] Fayer R, Dubey JP, Lindsay DS.: Trends Parasitol. 2004 Nov;20(11):531-6.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15471705

[10] Appelbee AJ, Thompson RC, Olson ME.: Giardia and Cryptosporidium in mammalian wildlife--current status and future needs. Trends Parasitol. 2005 Aug;21(8):370-6.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15982929

[11] Cacciò SM.: New methods for the diagnosis of Cryptosporidium and Giardia. Parassitologia. 2004 Jun;46(1-2):151-5
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15305706

[12] Coklin T, Farber J, Parrington L, Dixon B.: Prevalence and molecular characterization of Giardia duodenalis and Cryptosporidium spp. in dairy cattle in Ontario, Canada. Vet Parasitol. 2007 Dec 25;150(4):297-305. Epub 2007 Oct 26.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17964724

[13] Coklin T, Uehlinger FD, Farber JM, Barkema HW, O'Handley RM, Dixon BR.: Prevalence and molecular characterization of Cryptosporidium spp. in dairy calves from 11 farms in Prince Edward Island, Canada. Vet Parasitol. 2009 Mar 23;160(3-4):323-6. Epub 2008 Nov 5.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19070965

[14] Keshavarz A, Haghighi A, Athari A, Kazemi B, Abadi A, Mojarad EN.: Prevalence and molecular characterization of bovine Cryptosporidium in Qazvin province, Iran. Vet Parasitol. 2009 Mar 23;160(3-4):316-8. Epub 2008 Nov 13.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19091477

[15] Pirestani M, Sadraei J, Dalimi Asl A, Zavvar M, Vaeznia H.Molecular characterization of Cryptosporidium isolates from human and bovine using 18s rRNA gene in Shahriar county of Tehran, Iran. Vet Parasitol. 2007 Dec 25;150(4):297-305. Epub 2007 Oct 26.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18478266

[16] Ng J, Eastwood K, Durrheim D, Massey P, Walker B, Armson A, Ryan U.: Evidence supporting zoonotic transmission of Cryptosporidium in rural New South Wales.Exp Parasitol. 2008 May;119(1):192-5. Epub 2008 Feb 2.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18343369

[17] Geurden T, Goossens E, Levecke B, Vercammen F, Vercruysse J, Claerebout E.: Occurrence and molecular characterization of Cryptosporidium and Giardia in captive wild ruminants in Belgium. J Zoo Wildl Med. 2009 Mar;40(1):126-30
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19368251

[18] King BJ, Hoefel D, Daminato DP, Fanok S, Monis PT.: Solar UV reduces Cryptosporidium parvum oocyst infectivity in environmental waters. J Appl Microbiol. 2008 May;104(5):1311-23. Epub 2008 Jan 31.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18248370

[19] Betancourt WQ, Rose JB.: Drinking water treatment processes for removal of Cryptosporidium and Giardia. Vet Parasitol. 2004 Dec 9;126(1-2):219-34.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15567586

[20] Erickson MC, Ortega YR.: Inactivation of protozoan parasites in food, water, and environmental systems. J Food Prot. 2006 Nov;69(11):2786-808.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17133829

[21] Peng X, Murphy T, Holden NM.: Evaluation of the effect of temperature on the die-off rate for Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts in water, soils, and feces. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2008 Dec;74(23):7101-7. Epub 2008 Oct 10.
http://aem.asm.org/cgi/content/full/74/23/7101?view=long&pmid=18849452

[22] Chen LF, Li JH, Zhang XC, Liu Q, Zhao YP, Cao LL.: Establishment of in vitro cultivation of Giardia canis trophozoites infected with Giardia canis virus
Zhongguo Ji Sheng Chong Xue Yu Ji Sheng Chong Bing Za Zhi. 2006 Aug;24(4):261-5
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17094593

[23] Cao L, Gong P, Li J, Zhang X, Zou X, Tuo W, Liu Q, Wang Q, Zhang G, Chen L, Li L, Su L.
Giardia canis: ultrastructural analysis of G. canis trophozoites transfected with full length G. canis virus cDNA transcripts. Exp Parasitol. 2009 Jul 17.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19619539

[24] Arthurson, Veronica: Proper sanitization of sewage sludge: a critical issue for a sustainable society.Appl Environ Microbiol. 2008 Sep;74(17):5267-75. Epub 2008 Jul 7.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18606792

[25] Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 October 2002 laying down health rules concerning animal by-products not intended for human consumption
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2002:273:0001:0095:EN:PDF



25.07.2009: High fish oil diet rich in EPA and DHA deduces risk of age-related macular degeneration[1]
Tuo and colleagues 2009 report that high n-3 fatty acid enriched EPA and DHA diet slowed progression of age-related macular degeneration in mice. Also reversion of some retinal lesions were found. The authors suggest that the arachidonic acid metabolism decreased pro-inflammatory derivatives (prostaglandin E2 and leukotriene B4) and increased anti-inflammatory derivative (prostaglandin D2). Their results support other findings in human studies on the effect of omega-3 fatty acids on age-related macular degeneration.

[1] Tuo J, Ross RJ, Herzlich AA, Shen D, Ding X, Zhou M, Coon SL, Hussein N, Salem N Jr, Chan CC: A High Omega-3 Fatty Acid Diet Reduces Retinal Lesions in a Murine Model of Macular Degeneration. American Journal Of Pathology, 2009; Am J Pathol. 2009 Jul 16. [Epub ahead of print] DOI: 10.2353/ajpath.2009.090089
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19608872

24.07.2009: German Health officials act hysteric ordering senselessly non-existent H1N1 vaccine [1]
German health officials ordered 50 million doses for 700 Million Euro. It is not enough for everyone. To avoid panic the government considers to buy sufficient doses for the whole German population investing 2 Billion Euro.

The panic reaction of the German Government followed WHO recommending vaccination. WHO had failed to issue a travail warning to USA and Mexico. Both countries are still exporting the virus to the rest of the world.

According to the BBC the UK has about 100.000 cases of H1N1 infections with 31 death tolls. Professor Peter Openshaw, of Imperial College London, says about one in every three people who become infected will not realise they have had swine flu because they will have had no or only very few symptoms. He stresses that there is no additional concern, because healthy people can die of any flu-related virus if it causes complications such as pneumonia. About 98% of people who get infected will recover fully without any hospital treatment. The virus has not mutated so far, but and  seasonal flu often poses a serious threat to public health, killing each year 250,000 – 500,000 [2].

The British flu expert Thomas Jefferson, working for the international Cochrane Collaboration, says that effect of vaccination is uncertain. One should better focus on hygiene measures which had been effective during the epidemic of SARS. These measures were washing hands frequently and bearing surgical mask. He says that the strong focus on this specific virus looks as if the WHO, virologists and the pharmaceutical industry were longing for a pandemic. [3]

[1] Spiegel Online: Deutschland bestellt 50 Millionen Impfdosen gegen Schweinegrippe
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8021958.stm

[2] BBC News: Q&A: Advice about swine flu. 23.07.2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8021958.stm

[3] Spiegel Online: Haendewasche schuetzt viel besser . 22.07.2009
http://www.spiegel.de/wissenschaft/mensch/0,1518,637567-2,00.html

24.07.2009: The big H1N1 hype of Roche
Now that tension concerning swine flu in media revives, some conclusions become evident. Marketing department of leading pharmaceutical corporations performed a spectacular job heating up media and politics. Nobody dared to argue about the necessity of a vaccine and stockpiles of Tamiflu.

CNBC on his morning business ticker of 23.07.2009 reported a net profit of 4.05 Billion Swiss francs at Swiss drugmaker Roche on account of H1N1 vaccine. [1]

Global sales of the antiinfluenza medicine Tamiflu (oseltamivir) rose 203% to 1.0 billion Swiss francs in the first half-year. Sales to governments and corporations for pandemic stockpiling amounted to 653 million francs (609 million francs in the second quarter of 2009 compared with 49 million francs in the second quarter of 2008).

Roche, working with the World Health Organization (WHO) and national governments, started in May 2009 to supply Mexico and 71 other countries with the stocks of Tamiflu, and by the start of 2010 Roche will be able to supply up to 400 million packs annually. Oseltamivir will also be produced for China, India. [2]

Germany's health ministers on 21.07.2009 agreed on a plan to order some 50 million units of flu vaccine units. That's enough to immunize 25 million people against the H1N1 swine flu - a person has to be injected twice in order for the vaccine to be effective. The vaccines will provide protection for 30 percent of the German population.

In Germany 3.000 cases of swine flu have been reported, none were fatal. Authorities fear a mutation of the swine flu virus, could prove deadly. The H1N1 hype continues, boosted by governments and the WHO which warned that the spread of swine flu was unstoppable [3].

Mutation: Flu viruses mutate continuously. That is why vaccination of “common” cold is considered ineffective. Brazilian Adolfo Lutz Bacteriological Institute identified a new strain of the H1N1 called A/Sao Paulo/1454/H1N1 and compared it with samples of the A(H1N1) swine flu from California. According to Terezinha Maria de Paiva (June 16, 2009) the mutation comprised alterations in the Hemagglutinin protein which allows the virus to infect new hosts. However, it was not yet known whether the new strain was more aggressive than the current A(H1N1) virus. [4]

Severity is of no concern, says WHO [5]
At this time, WHO considers the overall severity of the influenza pandemic to be moderate. This assessment is based on scientific evidence available to WHO, as well as input from its Member States on the pandemic's impact on their health systems, and their social and economic functioning.
The moderate assessment reflects that:
- Most people recover from infection without the need for hospitalization or medical care.

- Overall, national levels of severe illness from influenza A(H1N1) appear similar to levels seen during local seasonal influenza periods, although high levels of disease have occurred in some local areas and institutions.

Vaccination for H1N1 is unnecessary
Looking at the costs and the results, it immediately becomes clear that there were rare global cases of death. Comparing with death tolls of other contagious diseases such as tuberculosis, malaria, viral hepatitis, early summer meningocephalitis and others, H1N1 is of no concern. Note hat Germany having diagnosed more than 3.000 cases had no even one single fatal case. Swine flu is thus a mild, often asymptomatic disease. The risk of adverse effects of vaccination is high, compared with flu risk. Contact with the swine flu trains the immune system building up barriers against flu viruses.

WHO and German health officials in an last effort to hide the wrong decision stress that mutation of the actual mild H1N1 virus may mutate to a more virulent variant. The pharmaceutical industry awaits hopefully this hype to be spread by the media.

[1] CNBC: Roche Profit Misses Forecasts, but Ups Guidance. 23.07.2009.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/32096080/site/14081545

[2] Roche Global Website: Pharmaceuticals Division growth twice as fast as market. Media release 23.07.2009.
http://www.roche.com/media/media_releases/med-cor-2009-07-23.htm

[3] Deutsche Welle.de: Germany plans to order 50 million swine flu vaccination units. 14.07.2009.
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,4486961,00.html

[4] Instituto Adolfo Lutz: Nota Tecnica
http://www.ial.sp.gov.br/gripe/gripe.html

[5] World Health organisation: What about severity?
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/frequently_asked_questions/levels_pandemic_alert/en/index.html

21.07.2009: Security of BioSafety Level 4 laboratories [1]
LeDuc and colleagues 2009 report that BioSafety Level 4 (BSL-4) laboratories directors in the United States reviewed in 2008 the current status of biocontainment laboratory operations. Various approaches to strengthen the safety and security of maximum-containment laboratory workers and their environment have been proposed and were considered in this review:

(1) Having 2 persons physically present within the BSL-4 facility any time that work is being performed (the 2-person rule). This was discarded as being to expensive, challenged its value and considered the risks that would result from a requirement that 2 persons be physically present in the laboratory at all times.

2) Use of surveillance cameras to monitor workers in the BSL-4 facility; and 3) use of radios or other means of communication between workers inside the laboratory and qualified contact persons outside the actual BSL-4 environment. This was found to present the best results, because the video material can be achieved for years and video cameras are already present in these departments, presenting no additional expenses.
All BSL-4 laboratories today are equipped with remote-controlled surveillance cameras that can track a person within the maximum-containment laboratory.

3) Use of radios or other means of communication between workers inside the laboratory and qualified contact persons outside the actual BSL-4 environment. All BSL-4 laboratories have telephones, and most BSL-4 facilities in the United States have some form of radio communication available to persons working in the suite,
Personnel screening

According to CDC persons who have gained the right of independent access to maximum-containment facilities are highly trained professionals who have earned the confidence of the laboratory director and are generally well respected and trusted by their colleagues. In addition, all such persons have had satisfactory background investigations and have obtained Department of Justice numbers in compliance with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Select Agent Program requirements. Furthermore, several BSL-4 laboratories are enacting some form of enhanced psychological screening and formal periodic monitoring of these persons.

US Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4) maximum-containment laboratories work with biologic war organisms like Anthrax, plague, smallpox, botulism, Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers, tularemie. Although no clinical infections, or major incidents in operation of the physical facilities were publicly known, a serious lack of security of these laboratories is its own personal which can steal powerful bacteria and viruses from their working place to use it as blackmail, avenge or even selling it to terrorists.

The anthax terror attacks 2001/2002 were caused by a security leak of a government laboratory [2] [3]
Such a lack of security has been crucially demonstrated by Dr. Bruve Ivins working for years at Fort Detrick, Maryland, known for military research and development of infectious pathogens and biological weapons. The anthrax bacteria of this laboratory killed five people and sickened 17 others. This incidence demonstrates the eminent public threat of keeping, multiplying and potentiating virulence of disease agents for biologic weapons.
The anthrax spores used in the 2001/2002 attacks came from a single flask of spores known as Bacillus anthracis RMR-1029 that was created and solely maintained by Dr. Ivins. While working inordinate hours alone at night and on the weekend in the lab where the flask of spores and production equipment were stored. Ivins had a history of mental health problems, including paranoid delusions. The government closed the case after Dr. Ivins committed suicide in 2008.

The threat is still existent and it comes from the evil created by the US public paranoia of self defence building up an arsenal of fire arms scattered at households all over the country, together with government activities building up biologic chemical and nuclear weapons. The USA must now be protect against itself, so as happened in 2001 with Anthrax bacteria from Fort Detrick.

[1] LeDuc JW, Anderson K, Bloom ME, Carrion R Jr, Feldmann H, Fitch JP, et al. Potential impact of a 2-person security rule on BioSafety Level 4 laboratory workers. Emerg Infect Dis. Volume 15, Number 7–July 2009. Doi: 10.3201/eid1507.081523
http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/15/7/e1.htm

[2] Years After Anthrax Attacks, Bioterrorism Threat Still Looms. Trnascript August 7. 2008.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/terrorism/july-dec08/bioterrorprep_08-07.html

[3] Justice Department, Unsealed Papers Outline Anthrax Case Against Dead Scientist. Auguist 6. 2008.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/law/july-dec08/anthrax_08-06.html


20.07.2009: Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus carriage in Belgian swine farms [1]
Denis and colleagues 2009 found a prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus ST 398 (MRSA) carriage in 37,8% of persons working on Belgian pig farms. On farms with MRSA-colonized pigs the prevalence of carriage was 50% versus 3% on farms without colonized pigs. Swine, exposed farmers and veterinarians are thus high risk factors for carriage of MRSA from Belgian pig farms. Notably these MRSA strains are genetically unrelated to hospital- or community-acquired clones.

The authors stress that risk factors for MRSA ST398 carriage was associated with being a farmer or farm co-worker, being male, having regular contact with animals (including goats, sheep, dogs, or cats) and, paradoxically, wearing gloves and apron and reporting occasional or regular hand disinfection with an antimicrobial product. This suggests that different animals could be MRSA ST398 reservoirs or vectors, at least on pig farms.

The authors call for more studies to determine other routes of transmission such as airborne transmission and contact with contaminated surfaces and companion animals which apaerntly reduce the effectiveness of the protection of gloves and apron.

[1] Denis, Olivier; Suetens, Carl; Hallin, Marie; Catry, Boudewijn; Ramboer, Ilse; Dispas, Marc; Willems, Glenda; Gordts, Bart; Butaye, Patrick; Struelens, Marc J. : Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus ST398 in Swine Farm Personnel, Belgium. CDC Emerging Infectious Diseases. Volume 15, Number 7–July 2009.
http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/15/7/1098.htm


19.07.2009: Plant sterol intake and low-fat diet [1]
Chen and colleagues 2009 studied the effect of low-fat diet and plant sterols on plasma lipids, lipoproteins and carotenoids.
Effect of low-fat diet: Plasma total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, Apo A1 and Apo B were lower with a fat reduction diet (26.4% fat and 7.7% of energy) compared with the typical American diet (33.5% fat and 13.2% of energy). TC/HDL cholesterol was found by the authors to remain inaltered.

Effect of plant sterol: Plant sterol intake lowered TC, LDL cholesterol, Apo B and TC/HDLC by without affecting HDL cholesterol and Apo A1.

The authors stress that the effect of phytosterol intake and low-fat diet lower independently plasma LDL cholesterol lipids and their effects are summed. The authors comment further that their findings support foregoing studies in relation to the effect of phitosterols on plasma carotenoids.

Phhytosterol and carotinoids [2]
Ntanios and colleagues 2002 studying side-effects associated with the consumption of PS-enriched spreads had found a small reduction in plasma levels of the most lipophilic carotenoids such as ß-carotene, but no changes in plasma vitamins A and E levels.

[1] Chen SC, Judd JT, Kramer M, Meijer GW, Clevidence BA, Baer DJ.: Phytosterol intake and dietary fat reduction are independent and additive in their ability to reduce plasma LDL cholesterol. Lipids. 2009 Mar;44(3):273-81.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19145455

[2] Ntanios FY, Homma Y, Ushiro S.: A spread enriched with plant sterol-esters lowers blood cholesterol and lipoproteins without affecting vitamins A and E in normal and hypercholesterolemic Japanese men and women. J Nutr. 2002 Dec;132(12):3650-5.
http://jn.nutrition.org/cgi/content/full/132/12/3650


19.07.2009: Raman spectroscopy to detect viruses [1]
A new rapid system for detecting and identifying viruses in near-real time is being developed by Tripp and colleagues. It is based on surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy to measure the frequency of near-infrared laser light. It detects and classifies microRNAs (miRNAs), which are regulators of gene expression during development and cell differentiation as well as biomarkers of disease.

miRNAs were first described in 1993 by Lee and colleagues, and the term microRNA was only introduced in 2001. [2]

The authors stress that the SERS-based sensor can detect extremely low number of viruses and provides its molecular fingerprint. The rapid response system can detect viruses from a nasal swab in one minute or less. A device which is now being developed can help to control disease outbreaks and bioterrorism, monitoring passengers at airports or speed up a diagnosis.

Fourier reflection infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR) detection of bacteria [3]
Li and Tripp 2008 used an alumina-coated ZnSe internal reflection element (IRE) to detect spores of Bacillus globigii by attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR). The interaction between the carboxylate groups of the bacterium and the positively charged sites on the alumina modulates the adsorption which is highly dependent on pH having ist maximum value at pH 5 a detection limit of 10(7) spores per cm2 is reported by the authors.

[1] Driskell JD, Seto AG, Jones LP, Jokela S, Dluhy RA, Zhao YP, Tripp RA: Rapid microRNA (miRNA) detection and classification via surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Biosens Bioelectron. 2008 Dec 1;24(4):923-8. Epub 2008 Aug 6.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18799303

[2] Wikipedia: MicroRNA
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MicroRNAs

[3] Li H, Tripp CP.: Detection of Bacillus globigii spores using a Fourier transform infrared-attenuated total reflection method. Appl Spectrosc. 2008 Sep;62(9):963-7.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18801234


19.07.2009: Vaccination reduces severity of rotavirus infections [1]
Pitzer and colleagues 2009 developed a mathematical modelling based on changing patterns of rotavirus transmission in the United States. The model includes regional birth rates and predicted vaccination levels and effectiveness. It says that when 80 percent or more of children in a given population are vaccinated, annual epidemics may occur on a less regular basis and more unvaccinated children will be protected.  The study explains the timing of rotavirus epidemics dependent on the birth rate in the population because newborns infants have an untrained immune system.

With the introduction of vaccination the rotavirus outbreaks may become less frequent and less pronounced as it was before vaccination. Pitzer stresses that despite uncertainties in the demographic differences and unpredictable conditions the introduction of vaccination in the developing world will decrease rotavirus death rates which is high in children under 5 years in developing countries.

[1] Pitzer VE, Viboud C, Simonsen L, Steiner C, Panozzo CA, Alonso WJ, Miller MA, Glass RI, Glasser JW, Parashar UD, Grenfell BT:.Demographic variability, vaccination, and the spatiotemporal dynamics of rotavirus epidemics. Science. 2009 Jul 17;325(5938):290-4.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19608910

18.07.2009: New perceptions on the pathogenicity of Bordetella hinzii [1]
According to Register and Kunkel 2009 Bordetella hinzii was believed to be non-pathogenic in poultry. However, recent studies say that the bacterium caused severe disease causing 100 percent morbidity in turkeys which was formerly attributed to Bordetella avium, a pathogenic bacterium that causes upper respiratory disease in poultry and wild birds.

To distinguish between B. hinzii and B. avium DNA-based tests were used. [2]

Register and Kunkle found four bordetella hinzii strains which were able to to grow and persist in the trachea and also caused clinical disease. The strains varied in severity, although none demonstrated 100 percent morbidity.
Another study found that Bordetella hinzii is not pathogenic for chickens.
Further researches will clarify how pathogenic strains differ from non-pathogenic once. And will look after the virulence factors affecting turkey poults.

Bordetella hinzii pathogenicity to humans [3]
Funke and colleagues 1996 highlight the importance of the genus Bordetella comprising species such as B. pertussis and B. parapertussis which are the causative agents of whooping cough in humans, B. bronchiseptica is primarily a respiratory pathogen found in animals but may also cause pneumonia and bacteremia in humans. B. avium causes coryza in poultry but has never been described as causing infections in humans. B. holmesii have been isolated from young adults with septicemia. B. hinzii was proposed as the species of some strains isolated from poultry with respiratory disease, The authors report two isolates of B. hinzii which, together with two other cases demonstrate that Bordetella hinzii can cause disease in humans. They caution, however, the role of B. hinzii in human infections but is still not completely understood.

Fry and colleagues 2007 describe a clinical isolate of Bordetella hinzii in the UK from a patient which had no known avian exposure, and the source of the organism remains unknown. The authors stress that human infection with Bordetella hinzii is rare. Genotypic methods, and the greater mutational variation of the ompA gene compared to other genes (e.g. 16S rRNA gene) is being suggested by the authors to differentiate Bordetella hinzii from Bordetella avium and other non-classical Bordetella species. [4]

[1] Register, K.B.; Kunkle, R.A.: Strain-specific virulence of Bordetella hinzii in poultry. Avian Dis. 2009 Mar;53(1):50-4.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19432003

[2] Register, K.B.; Sacco, R.E.; Nordholm, G.E.: Comparison of ribotyping and restriction enzyme analysis for inter- and intraspecies discrimination of Bordetella avium and Bordetella hinzii. J Clin Microbiol. 2003 Apr;41(4):1512-9.
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed&pubmedid=12682138

[3] Funke, G,; Hess, T,; von Graevenitz, A,; Vandamme, P.: Characteristics of Bordetella hinzii strains isolated from a cystic fibrosis patient over a 3-year period. Journal of Clinical Microbiology, Apr. 1996, p. 966–969
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=228927&blobtype=pdf

[4] Fry NK, Duncan J, Edwards MT, Tilley RE, Chitnavis D, Harman R, Hammerton H, Dainton L.: A UK clinical isolate of Bordetella hinzii from a patient with myelodysplastic syndrome. J Med Microbiol. 2007 Dec;56(Pt 12):1700-3.
http://jmm.sgmjournals.org/cgi/content/full/56/12/1700


17.07.2009: Aspartame High Court judgement at London backs artificial ingredients ban [1]
AHigh Court judgement has found in favour of Asda supermarket chain approving the labelling of the “Good For You” product rage claiming "no hidden nasties","no artificial colours or flavours, no aspartame, and no hydrogenated vegetable oils". Ajinomoto had launched a malicious falsehood action against Asda supermarket in 2008.

Ajinomoto searched for a ruling on what the statements by Asda mean in law, alleging that the “natural and ordinary” meaning of the words is that aspartame is “an especially harmful or unhealthy, or potentially harmful or unhealthy, sweetener and is one which consumers concerned for their own health and that of their families would do well to avoid.”

Ajinomoto tried to defend the reputation of aspartame, and products that are sweetened with aspartame “maliciously” classified as “nasty”.

The High Court did not call into question the safety of aspartame, which is being considered as safe by the the European Food Safety Authority. The High Court interpreted the Asda claim as“if you the consumer think that aspartame may be bad for you, or unpleasant to taste or consume, then this product is for you”.

The adjective “nasty” could mean anything from “unpleasant” to “dangerous” and coupling the word “Good for you” and “nasty” was inviting approval of products which did not contain aspartame and disapproval of those that did.

Two meanings to the term "nasties" were analised. The "natural and ordinary" meaning would be understood as meaning that it was potentially harmful or unhealthy.

The Court's own meaning of the terms, however was that "no reasonable reader could understand the words as a statement by Asda that all artificial colours and flavours are especially or actually harmful or unhealthy."

This judgement backs claims which highlight the exclusion of artificial supplement unwanted by the consumer following subjective arguments.

In face of the aspartame judgement, Asda renewed its call for other manufacturers and retailers to remove unnecessary, artificial additives from food and soft drink products.

Artificial sweeteners, train the gustatory senses to look after sweet products. Craving sets in and overeating follows. Adjusting to the natural sweetness of raw foods themselves it is possible to avoid artificial ingredients such as colours, flavour enhancers and sweeteners which have food value and trick the body thinking it is eating something delicious.
Asda already removed the six artificial colours shown by the Southampton Study to increase hyperactivity in children:

• E102 Tartrazine
• E104 Quinoline Yellow
• E110 Sunset Yellow
• E122 Carmoisine
• E124 Ponceau 4R
• E129 Allura Red

Other highlights of consumer friendly actions of Arla were:
It removed all artificial colours and flavours. It was first to hit FSA salt reduction targets. It was first to remove monosodium glutamate, hydrogenated fat and aspartame (90 tonnes) from its own label products.

The originat tradename is Nutrasweet and it appears on ingredient lists as “aspartame'”or “E951”.

New aspartame study by the UK Food Standards Agency FSA [2]
The Food Standards Agency announces at its website that it is to begin a new study looking at aspartame. The research will focus on people who have reported bad reactions to the artificial sweetener and will be published in 2011.


[1] Asda Press Centre: Sweet Victory as Asda Wins Court Fight Over Sweetener Claim. Supermarket calls on the industry to follow its lead and remove unnecessary, artificial additives from food and soft drink products. 15. July 2009.
http://www.asda-press.co.uk/pressrelease/310

[2] FSA: Aspartame study to begin. 22 June 2009
http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2009/jun/aspartame



14.07.2009 Prediction of drinking water needs [1]
The US army is engaged in operations all over the world. Transporting water to troops accounts for about one-third of costs of war activities. To make these activities less expensive Cheuvront and colleagues 2009 from The Institute of Medicine (IOM) developed sweating rate prediction models that calculate hourly and daily water needs based on metabolic rate, clothing and environment. It improves the Shapiro equation, which often over-predicts fluid needs.

The Shapiro equation (OSE): OSE was developed by the US army in 1982. It is expressed as
                ,
where:
- Ereq is evaporative heat loss required to maintain proper body temperature
- Emax is the evaporative potential of the environment
- msw represents sweat loss
- g*m-2 is grams of sweat multiplied by the body’s surface area
- * is multiplied

The new sweat equations
The authors published two new equations which are 58 and 65% more accurate with minimal error.

The corrected OSE: The corrected OSE is : (OSE,C): msw = 147*exp (0.0012*OSE)

The new equation PW: The new equation is: (PW): msw = 147+1.527*(Ereq) - 0.87*(Emax)

The authors stress that the two new equations provide for more accurate sweat predictions over a broader range of conditions with applications to public health, military, occupational and sports medicine settings.
Cheuvront and colleagues try to develop a public online application program calculating the sweat loss using individual variables such as height and weight, how hard and long they would be active, temperature, humidity, sunlight, wind and fitness levels.

[1] Gonzalez, Richard R.; Cheuvront, Samuel N.; Montain, Scott J. ; Goodman, Daniel A.; Blanchard, Laurie A. ; Larry G. Berglund, Michael N. Sawka: Expanded prediction equations of human sweat loss and water needs. Journal of Applied Physiology, 2009; DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00089.2009
http://jap.physiology.org/cgi/content/abstract/00089.2009v1


08.07.2009: Consumers feel no health benefits of bottled water over tap water, says study [1]
Bottled water became an important business. It is a bulky department of food stores.
Ward and colleagues 2009 assessed the health beliefs of consumers concerning bottled mineral water. The authors found that drinking bottled water was motivated by the believe it may confer general health benefits linked to the minerals in bottled water. This, however, plays a minor role in the decision to buy bottled water, where convenience, cost and taste are the important criterion. Links between plastic bottle and cancer, also detrimental effect on the environment were of concern.

This study supports an earlier study of Napier and Kodner 2008 which say that health benefits of bottled water for routine use is unclear. The authors stress, however the importance of bottled water in handling emergencies or natural disasters, compromising safety of tap water. [2]

US Regulations for bottled water [3]
The Institute of Food Technologists: published in 2008 an overview of drinking water standards and regulations, freshwater resources, water pollution and predominant sources of contamination, and the effects of agriculture and food processing on water quality and wastewater treatment. The overview also describes bottled water as defined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as water intended for human consumption that is enclosed in a sanitary container, contains no added ingredients (except or optional antimicrobial agents or FDA-specified amounts of fluoride), and meets all applicable federal and state standards. It must comply with FDA’s standards of quality, standards of identity (including labelling requirements), and current good manufacturing practices, and FDA’s standards of quality (21 CFR § 165.110[b]) [4] establishing maximum allowable levels of contaminants such asd chemical, physical, microbiological, and radiological in bottled water.

[1] Ward, L.A.; Cain, O.L.; Mullaly, R.A.; Holliday, K.S.; Wernham, A.G.; Baillie, P.D.; Greenfield, S.M.: Health beliefs about bottled water: a qualitative study. BMC Public Health. 2009 Jun 19;9(1):196.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19545357

[2] Napier, G.L.; Kodner, C.M..: Health risks and benefits of bottled water. Prim Care. 2008 Dec;35(4):789-802.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18928830

[3] Tarver, T.: "Just add water": regulating and protecting the most common ingredient. The Institute of Food Technologists:Vol. 73, Nr. 1, 2008—JOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE
http://members.ift.org/NR/rdonlyres/54EF1203-B11E-4A0B-A78B-525CB8D98ED3/0/JustAddWater.pdf

[4] 21 CFR 165.110 - Bottled water.
http://cfr.vlex.com/vid/165-110-bottled-water-19705533


05.07.2009: Late blight disease affecting U.S. Northeast tomatoes and potatoes [1]
The University of Cornell warns for late blight, caused by Phytophthora infestans affecting tomato and potato around the world. The New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station of the Cornell University stresses that the 2009 cool summer with frequent rains, weather have facilitated late
blight development in the Northeast of the U.S.A.

According to the report commercial growers spray fungicides to prevent its spread, however many homeowners are not aware of the disease. Their affected plants provide spores for their neighbor’s gardens and for commercial farms. The disease is reported over a broad area of the Northeast.
Infected plants have been distributed to large local retail stores from Ohio to Maine, facilitating the dissemination of the disease.

Spraying regularly with fungicides based on chlorothalonil is being recommended..
The symptoms develop on tomato leaves, stems and fruit. The leaf lesions are water-soaked when exposed to watering or heavy overnight dews. White fungal growth may appear at the affected parts of the plant.

Other plants related to tomatoes and potatoes, such as petunias are also at risk of the disease.

Downy mildew of basil [2]
Downy mildew of basil was reported at farms in the northeast USA in 2008. Yellowing of the plant were often attributed to nutritional problems, therefore the disease was often ignored.

The basil downy mildew pathogen can be spread in contaminated seed, in infected basil leaves, and as wind-dispersed spores. Downy mildew also was observed recently on ornamental plants related to basil, in particular coleus and salvia. These plants all belong to the Lamiaceae family, which includes basils (Ocimum spp.), mints (Menta spp.), sages (Salvia spp.) and other aromatics.

Contaminated seed is most likely the way that the basil downy mildew pathogen has been able to move between geographically-separated areas.  Phosphorous acid fungicides, ProPhyt and K-Phite and Actinovate AG are being recommended to control downy mildew on herbs..

[1] Irish Potato Famine Disease affecting Gardens and Farmers throughout the Greater Northeast
Revised by A. Wyenandt, NJAES, Rutgers University and M.T McGrath, Cornell University
Original article by Thomas A. Zitter, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/Late%20blight%20alert%20for%20gardeners1.pdf

[2] The Cornell University: Basil Downy Mildew - a new disease to prepare for.
http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/NewsArticles/BasilDowny.html


04.07.2009 Warning from untreated oysters  
A bacteria from the marine and and estuarine environments Vibrio vulnificus is being found in untreated oysters from the Gulf Coast. For people with compromise the immune system the bacteria is deadly for 50% of infections.  

The Vibrio vulnificus is a bacterium is present in seawater, sediments, plankton and shellfish (oysters, clams and crabs) in the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Coast and the entire U.S. West Coast. As a member of the Vibrionaceae family, Vibrio vulnificus it is related to Vibrio cholerae and Vibrio parahaemolyticus which produce diarrhea. Vibrio vulnificus causes wound infections, gastroenteritis, or a syndrome known as primary septicemia.

The CSPI says untreated oysters harvested from Gulf Coast waters from April to October should be subject to state bans and, meanwhile, consumers should avoid consuming such oysters. [1]

Raw shellfish northern regions are seen less dangerous as untreated shellfish from the Mexican Gulf because the water temperatures are lower than what is found in the Gulf. However, rising temperatures caused by the climate change will turn northern waters also a potential hazzard.

Pathogenic bacteria in Brazilian coastal waters [2]
Ristori and colleagues 2007 analized oysters and estuarine water samples from coastal waters of São Paulo, Brazil., The authors found Aeromonas spp., Plesiomonas shigelloides, Vibrio cholerae O1, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Vibrio vulnificus Salmonella, Shigella, Escherichia coli O157:H7 in oysters and in water samples too. The authors point out the Vibrio vulnificus was present in 10% of the samples, and Vibrio parahaemolyticus Kanagawa-negative was detected in all oyster samples. The study highlight the true microbial hazard in the aquatic environment and oysters.

Vibrio vulnificus risk from untreated shellfish throughout the year [3]
Ramirez and colleagues 2009 determined the occurrence of Vibrio vulnificus, in south Texas coastal waters. During this study Vibrio vulnificus was isolated at all sites throughout the year even with water temperature was down to 9.71 degrees C. However there was a correlations between concentrations of V. vulnificus and water temperature and dissolved oxygen, as well as between concentrations of V. vulnificus and enterococci. The authors concluded that the risk of infection of Vibrio vulnificus exists throughout the year.
Monitoring of data such as water temperatur, dissolved oxygen and enterococciu count are being suggested to predict rising risk.

Treated and untreated marine products pose a health risk according to a German scientist [4]
Uwe Janssen, in a period from 1994 and 1996 examined various edible fishery- and aquaculture-products from the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, and several exotic species of fish from Africa and Southeast Asia.
The incidence of Vibrionaceae was 43 % in the untreated products, and 11 % in the ready-to-eat foodstuff.
According to the author the high variety of pathogenic species found such as Plesiomonas shigelloides, Aeromonas hydrophila, Aeromonas caviae, Aeromonas sobria,Vibrio cholerae, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Vibrio vulnificus, Vibrio mimicus, and Vibrio alginolyticus indicate a potential heath risk posed by Vibriuonaceae untreated as well as treated fishery products, such as frozen, cooked, fermented, and cold-smoked products.

Vibrio vulnificus in German coastal waters [5]
Ruppert and colleagues 2004 reported two severe cases of Vibrio vulnificus wound infection with secondary septicemia in 2003 on the German island of Usedom in the southwestern Baltic Sea by wading in contaminated sea water. High concentrations of V. vulnificus in the sea water was found when water temperature exceeded 20°C for more than 2 weeks.

Other pathogens from shellfisch [6]
Plesiomonas shigelloides is a Gram-negative, rod-shaped bacterium which has been isolated from freshwater, freshwater fish, and shellfish and from many types of animals.
Infections from this organism cause gastroenteritis, followed by septicemia in immune deficient patients. It is placed among the Enterobacteriaceae. Some Plesiomonas strains share antigens with Shigella sonnei, and cross-reactions with Shigella antisera occur. Plesiomonas can be distinguished from Shigella in diarrheal stools by an oxidase test: Plesiomonas is oxidase positive and Shigella is oxidase negative. Plesiomonas is positive for DNAse; this and other biochemical tests distinguish it from Aeromonas sp.

Other pathogenic microorganisms in Greece seafood [7]
Papadoupolou and colleagues 2007 report in Greece marine fish and shellfish the presence of Aeromonas hydrophilia, Klebsiella ozonae, Escherichia coli, Yersinia enterocolitica, Hafnia alvei, Enterobacter agglomerans, Citrobacter freundii, Proteus vulgaris, Proteus mirabilis, Morganella morganii, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Pseudomonas putida, Plesiomonas shigelloides, Listeria innocua, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Clostridium perfringens, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida quillermondi, Candida albicans, Penicillium oxalicum and Penicillium italicum.


[1] CSPI: Governors Urged to Block Sale of Untreated Gulf Coast Oysters. Deadly Vibrio Bacteria Common in Summer Months. 02.07.2009
http://cspinet.org/new/200907021.html