Baxter verspreidt experimenteel materiaal met H5n1

quote:

Baxter’s H5N1 as global flu pandemic threat

There is no excuse. According to the scientific network PROMED, Baxter International Inc. in Austria "unintentionally contaminated samples with the bird flu virus that were used in laboratories in 3 neighbouring countries, raising concern about the potential spread of the deadly disease". Austria, Germany, Slowenia and the Czech Republic - these are the countries in which labs were hit with dangerous viruses. Not by bioterrorist commandos, but by Baxter. In other words: One of the major global pharmaceutical players seems to have lost control over a virus which is considered by many virologists to be one of the components leading some day to a new pandemic. Was it H5N1, or the even more risky H3N2? And what about the BSL3-Standards Baxter is operating when handling the viruses? What happened? And who failed? by Vlad Georgescu


These questions have to be answered not only by Baxter itself. It looks difficult to believe that viral and potentially lethal samples can cross the US border, pass the Atlantic, arrive the European Union and get into three countries without any or adequate control. While every tourist has to present his fingerprints and electronic registered passports entering the United States, institutions like the US Homeland Security should stay alert: Lacks in pharmaceutical companies may be the deadly door to future bioterrorist attacks.

The anthrax mailings from 2001 still are in mind of the FBI – Baxter shows that 8 years after that disaster there is no efficient control, at no level. To pronounce it this way is legitimated by the facts. H5N1 never should get on unknown travel routes with unwanted destinations. And H3N2 is no "sorry, it's an error" substance. It can be deadly for birds and humans, as virologists know.

The subprime crisis and the fate of many broken banks are an example for poor regulations. For the financial markets, for the entire economy this may have resulted in global recession. meanwhile, failure of control and regulations for labs operating with viruses like H5N1 will have another outcome: the risk of a new global pandemic, bioterrorist attacks or millions of deaths. This is the only message, and lesson, for President Barack Obama and his team: Get things in biohazard labs under control – at home.
bron

quote:

Baxter admits contaminated seasonal flu product contained live bird flu virus
Feb 27, 2009

The company that released contaminated flu virus material from a plant in Austria confirmed Friday that the experimental product contained live H5N1 avian flu viruses.

And an official of the World Health Organization's European operation said the body is closely monitoring the investigation into the events that took place at Baxter International's research facility in Orth-Donau, Austria.

"At this juncture we are confident in saying that public health and occupational risk is minimal at present," medical officer Roberta Andraghetti said from Copenhagen, Denmark.

quote:

Bird flu mix-up could have spelled disaster
IT'S emerged that virulent H5N1 bird flu was sent out by accident from an Austrian lab last year and given to ferrets in the Czech Republic before anyone realised. As well as the risk of it escaping into the wild, the H5N1 got mixed with a human strain, which might have spawned a hybrid that could unleash a pandemic.

Last December, the Austrian branch of US vaccine company Baxter sent a batch of ordinary human H3N2 flu, altered so it couldn't replicate, to Avir Green Hills Biotechnology, also in Austria. In February, a lab in the Czech Republic working for Avir alerted Baxter that, unexpectedly, ferrets inoculated with the sample had died. It turned out the sample contained live H5N1, which Baxter uses to make vaccine. The two seem to have been mixed in error.

Markus Reinhard of Baxter says no one was infected because the H3N2 was handled at a high level of containment. But Ab Osterhaus of Erasmus University in the Netherlands says: "We need to go to great lengths to make sure this kind of thing doesn't happen."
bron

quote:

De Baxter h5n1 zaak: De zogenoemde "vergissing" was voor sommigen geen verassing
Na het bericht over de "Baxter case" welke we afgelopen vrijdag op deze website plaatsten is er al weer een hoop gebeurt. En dus wordt tijd voor een update en analyse van de huidige gegevens en informatie.

Konden we vrijdag slechts in de Tsjechische, Duits of Engelse taal iets over deze zaak lezen, nu zijn daar vele talen bij gekomen. Het artikel en onderwerp is hu onder andere ook in het Russisch en Frans terug te lezen.
bron

quote:

Op woensdag 11 maart 2009 12:22 schreef The_End het volgende:

[..]

Uit die link van jou:
[..]

-Het is naar labs verschillende landen gestuurd. Nergens zie ik 18 staan?
-Het was materiaal voor expirimenten
-Nergens uit blijkt dat het expres was.

Als je niet hebt gelogen, dan kan je geen engels of ben je zwakzinnig.

quote:

Op woensdag 11 maart 2009 14:25 schreef B-FliP het volgende:
Dit lijkt me een goede samenvatting van de situatie:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126983.400-bird-flu-mixup-could-have-spelled-disaster.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news

Het is een freak-accident vanuit een samenloop van omstandigheden... De kans dat zoiets gebeurt is ontzettend klein maar de gevolgen hadden zeer groot kunnen zijn... Gelukkig heeft alles binnen geisoleerde omgeving plaatsgevonden...

Heb ergens gelezen dat er vanuit de WHO een onderzoek is gedaan naar de gang van zaken binnen Baxter en er geconcludeerd is dat het een ongeluk betreft dat niet aan nalatigheid of opzet onderhevig is, en de kans op herhaling nihil is, dus zal de situatie voor Baxter geen negatieve consequenties hebben...

Dit laatste vind ik een btje raar... (nog) Een extra controle alvorens het uitsturen zou een soort van ongeluk als dit toch kunnen voorkomen? Ach ja, wie weet hebben ze dat ook wel gedaan nu...

quote:

Initially, Baxter attempted to stonewall questions by invoking “trade secrets” and refused to reveal how the vaccines were contaminated with H5N1. After increased pressure they then claimed that pure H5N1 batches were sent by accident. This was seemingly an attempt to quickly change the story and hide the fact that the accidental contamination of a vaccine with a deadly biological agent like avian flu is virtually impossible and the only way it could have happened was by wilful gross criminal negligence.
bron

quote:

Was the viral contamination intentional?
The shocking answer is that this couldn't have been an accident. Why? Because Baxter International adheres to something called BSL3 (Biosafety Level 3) - a set of laboratory safety protocols that prevent the cross-contamination of materials.
bron

quote:

Under the BSL3 code of conduct, it is impossible for live avian flu viruses to contaminate production vaccine materials that are shipped out to vendors around the world.

This leaves only two possibilities that explain these events:

Possibility #1: Baxter isn’t following BSL3 safety guidelines or is so sloppy in following them that it can make monumental mistakes that threaten the safety of the entire human race. And if that’s the case, then why are we injecting our children with vaccines made from Baxter’s materials?

Possibility #2: A rogue employee (or an evil plot from the top management) is present at Baxter, whereby live avian flu viruses were intentionally placed into the vaccine materials in the hope that such materials might be injected into humans and set off a global bird flu pandemic.
bron

quote:

Op woensdag 11 maart 2009 20:20 schreef heiden6 het volgende:
Ik heb het topic niet gelezen, toen ik zag wie het had geopend.

quote:

Op donderdag 12 maart 2009 16:14 schreef Frutsel het volgende:
Topic terug in NWS. Zie ook FB.
Klachten over topics/TS kunnen via TR of via FB zoals iemand anders wel snapte.

Stop aub met het aanvallen van de TS. Je hoeft niet te reageren op de TS of in dit topic als het je niet aanstaat

quote:

Op woensdag 11 maart 2009 20:17 schreef BUG80 het volgende:

[..]

In punt #1 staat dat het wel degelijk per ongeluk gebeurd kan zijn (door een domme fout).

En kun je hier nog even antwoord op geven?
[..]

Als het expres was, was het dus ontzettend DOM om het op deze manier te proberen (laten we een sample dat naar 3/4 andere laboratoria infecteren met het vogelgriep virus!! Jaaa!! Dat hebben ze vast niet door!!). Kortom, als zulke amateurs proberen de mensheid uit te roeien snap ik niet dat je daar bang voor bent, Lambiekje. Dat krijgen ze toch niet voor elkaar.