Bird flu: origins, spread, and public health impacts

¶ … Pipper et al. (2007) is about a low-cost, successful, easy to use system that can be used in a timely manner globally and, most importantly, be employed in countries that lack the basic public health resources. It is known that timely administration of the bird flue vaccination (anti-viral drugs) can contain the fever at its source. However, this may be improbable to achieve in countries where the resources (due to expense) are lacking. In these countries, therefore, low-cost, easy-to-use handheld units would be an effective solution. The authors, accordingly, recommend a micro fluid system that can detect the H5N1 virus via a throat swab that uses magnetic forces to extract a free droplet that contains supramagnetic particles. This viral RNA is then isolated, purified, and preconcentrated before being subjected to ultra fast real-time RT-PCR. The benefit of this system is that compared to other standard tests, the bioassay is as effective but is 440% times faster and 2,000 to 5,000% cheaper to apply.

Whilst making no claims about treatment of the disease, the article points to the fact that so many people are hindered from receiving treatment due to the inability of the country to pay for the huge expense of vaccinating the mass of their citizens against the disease. This is particularly the case in Southeast Asia where H5N1 is now entrenched with transmission of infection resulting from either direct contact with infected birds or with human contact. At the best of times, the epidemic is contained if a new virus is spotted within the first 20 cases or up to within 21 days after the first case emerges. Optimal prevention -- and therefore cure -- necessities rapidity on health care professionals identifying and treating infected individuals. However, some of the developing Asian, Middle Eastern, and African countries are unable to supply the adequate instruments and diagnosis kits for the prerequisite sample collection, isolation, RT-PCR and other necessary procedures for halting and treating the epidemic. Clearly then there is a need for a low-cost, easy-to-use handheld unit that facilitates the procedure.

By providing one, the authors provide a global perspective about the disease in that they focus on developing countries that need help in hindering the disease at its outset and in preventing it from spreading. The authors' contributions are particularly significant on a global perspective in that no microfluidic diagnostic devices are currently available to treat emerging and re merging infectious diseases such as measles, HIV / AIDS, influenza, cholera, tuberculosis, or malaria. Their contributions, therefore, can be extended to more fields than one and have enormous positive ramifications and impact.

Following bench top protocols for all steps during the creation of their experiment, the authors differed from conventional creation of flu vaccinations only in the short diffusion distance that they adopted between the surface of the supramagnetic particles and the viral RNA during the solid-phase extraction (SPE) of the free droplet, as well as in the fast mass and heat transfer that they applied to the entire microsytem. Their entire procedure was completed in less than 28 minutes. The current H5N1 tests, on the toehr hand, occur around the space of 4 hours.

Their point-of-care tests are comprised of an instrument that has a disposable component and, by being low cost and rapid to use, is ideal for those countries that need it most and where, due to depleted resources, the influenza vaccine is unavailable. Resources for creating their point-of-care tests are inexpensive: a CD-ROM drive, a power supply, a spindle stepper motor for microfluidic actuation, and optics for fluorescence detection. Most countries can, with help from generous and more privileged others, come up with these requirements. Transport and storage related issues would need to be transfigured into the expense.

Conclusion

The authors provide an important and under mentioned perspective to treatment of H5N1 influenza by noting that countries that most need the vaccination and treatment are not receiving it due to their inability to pay for the expense. Bird flue, rather than being impeded, is therefore spreading. The authors, accordingly, posit a supremely practical and professional solution to providing a drug that is not only cheaper, and faster but also as equally effective as standard drugs ("the bioassay is as effective but is 440% times faster and 2,000 to 5,000% cheaper to apply").