Fw: SARS linked to civets, badgers, and raccoon dog (tanuki); Chinese green groups urge mainland to ban the eating of wild animals

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Saturday, May 24, 2003 10:27 AM

SARS linked to civets, badgers, and raccoon dog (tanuki); Chinese

green groups urge mainland to ban the eating of wild animals

 

 

[Note from Merritt Clifton: SARS has also been found in a badger and

a tanuki. (Second article.) Tanuki are farmed for fur--and civets,

by the way, are related to mink. I think we may be looking at the

Chinese fur farm industry as

a SARS reservoir.]

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--

 

South China Morning Post Friday, May 23, 2003

 

Green groups urge mainland to ban the eating of wild animals

Conservationists say it is bad news for ecology and cite fears the

practice may be the source of the Sars virus

CHEUNG CHI-FAI

 

Green groups from both sides of the border united yesterday to urge the

central government to ban the eating of wild animals.

 

Forty-five groups, including the Conservancy Association in Hong Kong

and a number of non-governmental organisations across the mainland,

said it was time to challenge Chinese culinary culture.

 

They signed and issued a joint statement calling for a ban on eating

wild animals on what was International Biodiversity Day.

 

The groups called on the central government to amend the national law

on wild animal protection to ban the hunting, trading, eating, and

rearing of exotic animals, saying eating them should be outlawed in

restaurants, while zoos should also be strictly regulated.

 

The call came in the midst of worries that the Sars virus might have

originated from wild animals; the first people to be infected on the

mainland had frequent contact with animals.

 

The mainland government has already issued an administrative ban on the

trade of wild animals. But the groups say this is not as effective as

legislation.

 

David Chu Yu-lin, a Hong Kong deputy to the National People's Congress,

has also proposed a law to ban the eating of wild animals.

 

Lister Cheung Lai-ping, executive director of the Conservancy

Association, said the Chinese obsession with eating wild animals was

outdated and uncivilised.

 

" We need to abandon this outdated concept, not just for the ecology but

for the sake of our own health, as many harmful parasites found on

these animals might be the origins of deadly diseases, " she said.

 

Ms Cheung said Qingping market, a notorious wild animal market in

Guangzhou, should be closed immediately.

 

" People defending the market would say it is only selling common

species. But when the population of these animals comes down, they will

become the endangered ones. "

 

The association has also called on Hong Kong government officials to

avoid eating wild animals when visiting the mainland. In addition, the

group has written to tour agencies, legislators and district councillors

to ask them to stop operating feasting tours to the mainland.

 

Ms Cheung also criticised a recent television series on eating animals

screened on TVB Jade in Hong Kong, which was also broadcast in Guangdong.

 

Jackie Wong Sze-sum, director of the Hong Tai Travel in Hong Kong, said

they had already abolished such feasting tours some time ago. He said he

would urge other agents to also end such tours.

 

" It is a dying business, " he said. " Many tour agencies do not organise

these tours any more. We all know that Sars might be related to wild

animals. So we have stopped that and we will never do it again. "

 

-----

 

AP international. (05-23-03) 07:40 PDT

 

Hong Kong researchers link SARS to mongoose-like animal

JONATHAN FOWLER, Associated Press Writer

 

GENEVA (AP) -- The World Health Organization has traced the SARS

virus to the civet cat and two other small mammals in China, and

researchers are investigating a possible link to the outbreak of

the virus in humans, an official said Friday.

 

Researchers from the University of Hong Kong examined 25 animals

representing eight species in a live animal market in southern

China and found the SARS virus in all six masked palm civets they

sampled, as well as in a badger and a raccoon dog.

 

Klaus Stohr, chief SARS virologist at the World Health

Organization, said Friday it was impossible to tell from the study

whether any of the animals spread the virus to humans or whether

they caught the virus from people.

 

The researchers said people could have been infected by the

animals as they handled the animals while raising, slaughtering or

cooking them. Eating fully cooked meat was probably safe, the

researchers said.

 

Civet cats are nocturnal animals related to the mongoose, with

long tails and catlike bodies. They resemble small raccoons or

weasels.

 

The researchers said it was possible that animals got SARS from

human feces used in fertilizer, and the illness did not originate

with them. They recommended such game animals should be raised,

slaughtered and sold under careful monitoring. Researchers have

previously said SARS came from animals but not been sure what

kind.

 

Meanwhile, the WHO lifted its SARS-related travel advisories

Friday against Hong Kong and the Chinese province of Guangdong,

and scientists in Hong Kong have found the SARS virus in three

species of small mammals traded at a food market.

 

Also, an American physician with the Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention who was helping Taiwan battle SARS left the island

Friday on a charter flight for Atlanta after developing a fever

and other symptoms possibly caused by the virus.

 

Though the WHO said the virus was under control in Hong Kong and

China's southern Guangdong province, it continued to advise

against nonessential travel to the Chinese capital, Beijing, and

to the regions of Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi and Tianjin. It

also continued to advise against travel to Taiwan, because of

continuing new transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome.

 

There also have been no recent reports of cases being exported to

other countries from Hong Kong or Guangdong. All new cases in the

past 20 days have occurred in people who were " already identified

as contacts of a person with SARS and under active surveillance by

the local health authorities, " WHO added.

 

SARS has infected more than 8,000 people worldwide and killed at

least 689, the vast majority in China and Hong Kong.

 

" The outbreak in many areas of China is ongoing, and will require

continuing intensive efforts as well as a rapid injection of new

resources to fully contain SARS, " WHO said.

 

Also Friday, a private jet departed Taiwan for the United States

carrying an American physician who came down with possible SARS

symptoms. He had been sent to the island by the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention.

 

Taiwan's SARS Control Committee identified the doctor as Chesley

L. Richards Jr., an infection control expert.

 

Richards arrived in Taiwan on May 15 and had visited the emergency

rooms and intensive-care units at two Taipei hospitals where SARS

outbreaks were reported, Taiwanese officials said.

 

This week, he developed a fever and a cough -- common SARS

symptoms, CDC director Dr. Julie Gerberding said Thursday at the

centers' headquarters in Atlanta.

 

WHO said the SARS virus has infected chains of up to 15 people and

appears to be just as hardy in its last victim as in its first.

Some other viruses mutate over time, and their ability to transmit

weakens.

 

WHO says it is seeking $200 million to launch a fund to help Asian

nations combat SARS through medical surveillance and analysis.

 

Taiwan reported 55 new SARS cases Friday but no new deaths. The

island's total number of infections is 538 and the death toll is

60. That gives the island the third-highest toll after mainland

China and Hong Kong.

 

In Canada, health officials say they fear that four people in a

Toronto hospital may be ill with SARS. All four are in a

respiratory isolation ward, two in critical condition.

 

Health officials, who learned of the cases late Thursday and do

not yet know how the people may have been exposed to the disease,

said they cannot say for certain if these are the city's first new

SARS cases in over a month. The city last reported a new case of

SARS on April 19.

 

In Singapore, a newspaper reported that some parents are keeping

their children chilled with ice water and air conditioning before

classes so they won't be sent home with suspected fevers as part

of anti-SARS measures.

 

------------

SARS Virus Likely Came from Civet Cats-Scientists

By Tan Ee Lyn

 

HONG KONG (Reuters) - A top Hong Kong scientist said on Friday it was

likely the deadly SARS virus that has killed almost 700 people

worldwide jumped to humans from civet cats, which are considered a

delicacy by many people in southern China.

 

The finding will help prevent a repeat of such an epidemic in the

future through the use of more hygienic and regulated methods of

farming and slaughter, said Professor Yuen Kwok-yung, head of the

Department of Microbiology at the University of Hong Kong.

 

" From genetic information, it is highly likely that the virus jumped

from civet cats to humans, " Yuen told reporters, releasing the

results of a month-long investigation by Hong Kong and Chinese

scientists who tracked the source of the virus.

 

Southern Chinese have a particular penchant for eating wild game,

including civet cats, endangered snakes and turtles, but such

practices have come under increasing scrutiny because close contact

between animals and wild game may help animal viruses jump the

species barrier to humans.

 

Yuen said civet cats carried huge amounts of the virus in their

stools and respiratory secretions but remained unaffected.

 

However, anyone who reared or slaughtered the animal risked infection

if they came in contact with the feces or respiratory secretions of

the mammal, which is a native of Africa and Asia.

 

" If you touch a surface that is contaminated with the virus and you

transfer it to your mucous membrane, there is a high chance you will

be infected, " he said.

 

While it is illegal to sell and consume endangered species in China,

authorities have long looked the other way. These animals are kept

and sold openly in markets in southern China -- and subsequently

butchered -- often in very unsanitary conditions.

 

The first known SARS case emerged in southern China in November and

began spreading to several other countries from March, infecting

8,113 people so far and killing 688.

 

Experts say SARS is caused by an unknown member of the corona family

of viruses, which cause the common cold.

 

Yuen said scientists had isolated four virus samples from the feces

and respiratory secretions of civet cats and they were " very similar "

to the coronavirus found in SARS patients.

 

05/23/03 07:26

 

Copyright Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved.

 

-- ----------

http://www.msnbc.com/news/885653.asp?0bl=-0

SARS virus linked to civet cats

MSNBC News Services

 

A top Hong Kong scientist said Friday that research showed it was

likely the SARS virus that has killed almost 700 people worldwide

jumped to humans from civet cats, which are considered a delicacy by

many people in southern China. Possible cases in Toronto prompted a

new travel alert, while travel warnings were lifted for two of the

disease's hot spots in Asia.

SCIENTISTS HAVE ISOLATED four virus samples from the feces and

respiratory secretions of civet cats, a nocturnal animal related to

the mongoose, and they were " very similar " to the coronavirus found

in SARS patients, said Professor Yuen Kwok-yung, Department of

Microbiology head at the University of Hong Kong.

 

" From genetic information, it is highly likely that the virus jumped

from civet cats to humans, " Yuen told reporters, releasing results of

a month-long investigation by Hong Kong and Chinese scientists.

 

Experts say SARS is caused by an unknown member of the corona family

of viruses, which cause the common cold.

 

In Geneva, World Health Organization (WHO) officials warned it was

too early to jump to firm conclusions. " At this point of time, we

cannot definitely conclude that these or any other animals are the

reservoirs or hosts for SARS, " said WHO chief scientist Klaus Stohr.

 

WARNINGS UPDATED

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control warned travelers to Toronto

again Friday, saying any visitors should take caution because of five

new apparent SARS cases there. The alert came three days after it

lifted its travel warning for Canada's largest city. It did not go so

far as to issue a travel advisory, which would have recommended

against nonessential travel. Instead, CDC said travelers should

monitor their health and stay away from large crowds of people.

Toronto health officials issued a notice which mentioned only four

cases; they warned those with possible symptoms to avoid contact with

others.

 

The cases are being monitored in a hospital respiratory isolation

ward -- and two are in critical condition. Health officials don't yet

know how the victims were exposed to the disease, but barred access

to the facility in question, St. John's Rehabilitation Hospital.

 

WHO issued a notice about the Toronto cases but did not change its

status on the city. It did, however, withdraw its warning Friday

against travel to Hong Kong and the southern Chinese province of

Guangdong, saying SARS outbreaks there were under control.

 

" Guangdong was the first place in the world to have cases of SARS but

I am pleased to note that due to the efforts of the local and

national health authorities, with support from WHO, the outbreaks in

Guangdong and Hong Kong are being contained, " said WHO-General Gro Harlem Brundtland.

 

The U.N. health agency continued to advise against all nonessential

travel to the Chinese capital, Beijing, and to the regions of Hebei,

Inner Mongolia, Shanxi and Tianjin, as well as to Taiwan, because of

continuing new transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome.

 

In Hong Kong, the daily number of new cases has on average been below

five for the past six days and the number of patients in hospitals

has dropped below 60, WHO said. Both were conditions in removing the

ban.

 

" The pattern of the outbreak shows a sustained decline since the peak

of new cases in late March, " the agency said.

 

In Guangdong, the average of new cases has been below five for 11

days and the number of patients in the hospital fell below 60 on

Tuesday.

 

" Due to the efforts of the provincial health authorities, the extent

of local transmission has fallen to low levels over recent weeks, "

WHO said.

 

There have been no recent reports of cases being exported to other

countries from Hong Kong or Guangdong, it added.

 

The first known SARS case emerged in southern China last November and

began spreading to several other countries in March, infecting 8,113

people so far and killing 688.

 

SARS LINK TO CIVETS

The civet cat, or civet, belongs to a large group of mostly nocturnal

mammals which also includes the mongoose. The Columbia Encyclopedia

says civets are not true cats, but are related to the cat family.

Most have cat-like bodies, long tails and weasel-like faces.

 

Stohr said traces of an animal coronavirus, genetically " almost

identical " to that found in humans, had also been discovered in a

raccoon dog and in a badger.

 

The animals were among 25, including the civets, taken and tested

from a single live animal market which had been chosen at random in

Guangdong province near Hong Kong.

 

Southern Chinese like to eat wild game, including civets. These

animals are kept and sold openly in markets in southern China -- and

subsequently butchered -- often in very unsanitary conditions.

 

Yuen said civet cats carried huge amounts of the virus in their

stools and respiratory secretions but remained unaffected.

 

" If you touch a surface that is contaminated with the virus and you

transfer it to your mucous membrane, there is a high chance you will

be infected, " he said.

 

In other SARS news:

 

TAIWAN reported 55 new SARS cases but no new deaths. The island's

total number of infections is 538 and the death toll is 60, the

third-highest after mainland China and Hong Kong.

WHO issued new recommendations for blood safety precautions, saying

anyone who has been in contact with a SARS patient or been in a

SARS-infection region should not give blood for at least three weeks.

No one is known to have contracted the disease through contaminated

blood.

 

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

MSNBC Terms, Conditions and Privacy ©2003

 

--------------------------------

SARS - WORLDWIDE (117): ETIOLOGY

***********************

A ProMED-mail post

<http://www.promedmail.org>

ProMED-mail is a program of the

International Society for Infectious Diseases

<http://www.isid.org>

 

23 May 2003

ProMED-mail <promed

Source: News [edited]

<http://story.news./news?tmpl=story & u=/ap/20030523/ap_on_he_me/sars

_virus & cid=541 & ncid=1624>

 

WHO Traces SARS Virus to Civet Cat

 

The World Health Organization has traced the SARS virus to the civet cat

and 2 other small mammals in China, and researchers are investigating a

possible link to the outbreak of the virus in humans, an official said

Friday.

 

Researchers from the University of Hong Kong examined 25 animals

representing 8 species in a live animal market in southern China and found

the SARS virus in all 6 masked palm civets they sampled, as well as in a

badger and a raccoon dog.

 

Klaus Stohr, chief SARS virologist at the World Health Organization, said

Friday it was impossible to tell from the study whether any of the animals

spread the virus to humans or whether they caught the virus from people. The

researchers said people could have been infected by the animals as they

handled the animals while raising, slaughtering or cooking them. Eating

fully cooked meat was probably safe, the researchers said.

 

Civet cats are nocturnal animals related to the mongoose, with long tails

and catlike bodies. They resemble small raccoons or weasels.

 

The researchers said it was possible that animals got SARS from human feces

used in fertilizer, and the illness did not originate with them. They

recommended such game animals should be raised, slaughtered and sold under

careful monitoring. Researchers have previously said SARS [probably] came

from animals, but [had] not been sure what kind.

 

[by: Jonathan Fowler]

 

--

ProMED-mail

<promed

 

[The connection with human fertilizer is obscure. Perhaps the theory is

that these carnivorous animals hunt in cultivated fields and become

contaminated in that way. But just because an animal tests positive does not

mean anything other than exposure to the virus; there is still no evidence

it originated with animals. - Mod.TG/JW]

 

 

 

 

 

--

Kim Bartlett, Publisher of ANIMAL PEOPLE Newspaper

Postal mailing address: P.O. Box 960, Clinton WA 98236 U.S.A.

Website: <www.animalpeoplenews.org>

Please do not send attachments - please paste information in

your message.

MY CORRECT EMAIL ADDRESS IS: <ANPEOPLE

If mail you send to me is bounced, it may be because " mail " has been

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Something to think about: In their book Shadows of Forgotten

Ancestors, Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan tell of actual laboratory

experiments in which monkeys were forced to choose between

electroshocking other monkeys and doing without food themselves.

Almost all of the monkeys went hungry for up to two weeks rather than

shock others. " These macaques -- who have never gone to Sunday

school, never heard of the Ten Commandments, never squirmed through

a single junior high school civics lesson -- seem courageous in their

moral grounding and their resistance to evil....If the situation were

reversed, and captive humans were offered the same deal by macaque

scientists, would we do as well? "

--

Kim Bartlett, Publisher of ANIMAL PEOPLE Newspaper

Postal mailing address: P.O. Box 960, Clinton WA 98236 U.S.A.

Website: <www.animalpeoplenews.org>

Please do not send attachments - please paste information in

your message.

MY CORRECT EMAIL ADDRESS IS: <ANPEOPLE

If mail you send to me is bounced, it may be because " mail " has been

automatically and incorrectly inserted in the " reply to " address.

 

Something to think about: In their book Shadows of Forgotten

Ancestors, Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan tell of actual laboratory

experiments in which monkeys were forced to choose between

electroshocking other monkeys and doing without food themselves.

Almost all of the monkeys went hungry for up to two weeks rather than

shock others. " These macaques -- who have never gone to Sunday

school, never heard of the Ten Commandments, never squirmed through

a single junior high school civics lesson -- seem courageous in their

moral grounding and their resistance to evil....If the situation were

reversed, and captive humans were offered the same deal by macaque

scientists, would we do as well? "