Posted on 04/30/2009 10:14:24 AM PDT by decimon
MANHATTAN -- In 1918 a human influenza virus known as the Spanish flu spread through the central United States while a swine respiratory disease occurred concurrently. A Kansas State University researcher has found that the virus causing the pandemic was able to infect and replicate in pigs, but did not kill them, unlike in other mammalian hosts like monkeys, mice and ferrets where the infection has been lethal.
Juergen A. Richt, Regents Distinguished Professor of Diagnostic Medicine and Pathobiology at K-State's College of Veterinary Medicine, studied the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic with colleagues from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture and Mount Sinai School of Medicine.
Their research supports the hypothesis that the 1918 pandemic influenza virus and the virus causing the swine flu were the same. Richt said the virus was able to infect and replicate in swine and cause mild respiratory disease. The 1918 virus spread through the pig population, adapted to the swine and resulted in the current lineage of the H1N1 swine influenza viruses. The researchers' study is published in the May 2009 Journal of Virology.
"This study emphasizes that an influenza virus, which is known to induce a lethal infection in ferrets and macaques, is not highly virulent in pigs, indicating a potential resistance of swine to highly virulent influenza viruses," Richt said. "It also suggests that pigs could have played a role in maintaining and spreading the 1918 human pandemic influenza virus."
Swine flu is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza that regularly causes outbreaks of influenza among the animals and can be transmitted to humans. It is a typical zoonotic agent. While swine flu was first recognized as a disease in 1918, there also were reports of the influenza occurring in the Midwest in 1930.
For the study, the researchers used the 1918 pandemic virus and a 1930 H1N1 influenza virus for experimental infections in swine. The 1930 virus was chosen as a virus because it is thought to be a descendent of the 1918 virus, Richt said.
The researchers did not find a significant difference in effects from the 1918 and 1930 viruses in infected pigs. This was surprising, since the 1918 virus killed more than 20 million people and was lethal to ferrets, mice and macaques. Another surprising finding from the study was the rapid antibody response in the animals infected with the 1918 virus, which is not typically reported for the swine influenza virus.
Richt said he plans to conduct a follow-up project that will study what makes a swine flu virus a pandemic flu virus.
The researchers conducted the study in the biosafety-level 4 laboratory and animal cubicle at the National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease in Canada.
You think this is why God called pigs “unclean” animals? Hmmmmm...what does God know? Hmmmm.....
I'm saving the world by eating the pigs before they kill everyone.
Where's my Medal of Freedom?
This is all above my pray grade but I suspect that is tradition and not commandment.
Now I'll sit back to await my flogging.
Biden to US: Hunker in the Bunker!
The researchers did not find a significant difference in effects from the 1918 and 1930 viruses in infected pigs. This was surprising, since the 1918 virus killed more than 20 million people and was lethal to ferrets, mice and macaques. Another surprising finding from the study was the rapid antibody response in the animals infected with the 1918 virus, which is not typically reported for the swine influenza virus.
This supports the alternate theory that it was not the virus that killed but a co-infection of strep for which we did not have antibiotics in 1918. The strep coinfection would not have occurred in the 1930 cases.
Jewish tribal elders figured out that pork tends to have a nasty disease associated with it.
From the CDC website
“If you eat raw or undercooked meats, particularly bear, pork, wild feline (such as a cougar), fox, dog, wolf, horse, seal, or walrus, you are at risk for trichinellosis.”
Most if not all those foods is unkosher.
I also believe that there is the fact that pork is the nearest in aroma and taste to human flesh. Indirectly not eating pork might cut down the rare cannibalism.
Since the laws about swine being unclean came from the book of Leviticus we have to assume that Jews from Adam to Moses in his youth ate pork without God condemning them. If swine is so unclean why would God allow Noah to bring Swine into the Ark?
PING
It's been my understanding that viral infections are rarely killers. That the viruses create opportunity for more serious bacterial infections.
I’ve noticed that some sources no longer call it Swine Flu. They call it Influenza A (H1N1)
If I recall a book about the 1918 flu there was a massive die off of swine the year before the flu hit. Most likely this was caused by a strain of the Swine Flu that later mutated into a flu that became transmittible in humans in 1918.
Hubby remarked that pork is marked down a LOT at the grocery store right now... Might be a good time to stock up on those yummy baby back ribs!
This fellow is claiming that that virus was not fatal to the piggies.
It wasn’t because the 1918 virus most likely didn’t exist until the 1917 swine virus mixed with another flu virus in either a human or bird host. Swine deaths in 1918 was not above normal and there was no evidence of pigs becoming infected or sick from the 1918 flu. Just like there was no evidence of humans getting sick from the sick swine in 1917.
If it was happening today we would have specimens of the virus in the pigs. The 1917 original swine virus if it was discovered somewhere would tell us a lot more about the 1918 human virus.
All animals have their purpose, some of them are to be scavengers and keep the earth cleansed of rotting and putrid things. - Having said that, the law was given to the Jews and not the Gentiles, but I’ve often wondered if it wouldn’t be better healthwise not to eat scavenger meats. I do like bacon, well done and crispy. In the Kingdom of God, rest assured we’ll eat what’s available and furnished for us.
The pig is regarded among them as an unclean animal, so much so that if a man in passing accidentally touch a pig, he instantly hurries to the river, and plunges in with all his clothes on. Hence, too, the swineherds, notwithstanding that they are of pure Egyptian blood, are forbidden to enter into any of the temples, which are open to all other Egyptians; and further, no one will give his daughter in marriage to a swineherd, or take a wife from among them, so that the swineherds are forced to intermarry among themselves.They do not offer swine in sacrifice to any of their gods, excepting Bacchus and the Moon, whom they honour in this way at the same time, sacrificing pigs to both of them at the same full moon, and afterwards eating of the flesh. There is a reason alleged by them for their detestation of swine at all other seasons, and their use of them at this festival, with which I am well acquainted, but which I do not think it proper to mention.
Hence the term, "long pork" for human flesh.
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