SARS Epidemic May Reemerge, CDC Director Warns

Reuters ^ | 6-18-03

[Prince Charles]

SARS Epidemic May Reemerge, CDC Director Warns

Wed June 18, 2003 03:04 PM ET

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Like deadly flu epidemics of the past, SARS may reemerge later this year as a global health threat, the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Wednesday.

Dr. Julie Gerberding pointed out that infectious diseases like SARS and monkeypox are spread around the world by travelers or by trade in exotic animals.

"This is the new normal: emerging infectious diseases ... that create immediate global concerns because of the movement of people and animals," Gerberding said in a speech to the American Medical Association's annual meeting.

Gerberding compared SARS to flu epidemics early in the last century that appeared to subside, only to erupt again with the change of seasons and kill millions.

"The risk is not over as any moment another patient could emerge," she said.

The World Health Organization said this week the worst was over in the battle against SARS and lifted a travel warning for Taiwan, leaving Beijing as the only place with an advisory in force.

But the United Nations agency said health authorities must stay alert for fresh outbreaks of the disease that killed almost 800 people and infected about 8,500 since it emerged late last year in southern China.

Gerberding said the number of cases was "definitely dwindling" but the Northern Hemisphere's fall and winter could witness another outbreak.

"Our next priority is to develop a rapid diagnostic test," she said. "We now know there are milder forms of the illness where people may not have symptoms. What we don't know is if these people can transmit the virus."

The monkeypox outbreak in the U.S. Midwest this spring caught health authorities by surprise, she said, and showed how the movement of people and animals around the globe posed health risks. There have been roughly 80 non-fatal human cases so far traced to pet prairie dogs, with the infection traced to a Gambian rat imported from Africa.

She said no new human cases of the deadly West Nile virus appeared in the United States so far this spring, though the CDC was tracking bird and mosquito virus carriers and expected the deadly illness to reappear this summer. Last year, there were more than 4,000 human cases and 284 deaths.

[Betty Jo]

Thank you, Fl_Engineer.There is some very high strangeness going on concerning Henry Niman.When you read tons of the SARS articles and see him quoted, more than anyone else,it raises a flag.

Why is an instructor in surgery at Shriners Burn Center such an expert?

When you do extensive searching as we've shown above,nothing about his bioengineering shows up.

When you search Harvard, and Mass General and Shriners, all that comes up is a telephone number at Shriners, and a email at harvard.edu.

Shriners is affiliated with Harv.

Even though I called his # at Shriners, and got his tape machine,I am not convinced that that couldnt be a phony or cover or whatever.

I know this sounds ridiculous,but it is very important when you consider the weight his SARS presence all over the world has.

Put that with his anthrax, and past freepin,and his being the inventor of a patent at Ligand,and his Porgenx and his pushing of Ligand stock while not announcing this patent,and Ligand merging with Seragen, which is so totally Canadian, and on and on.

I think perhaps the early Niman, back in the 70's 80's is not this Niman.

Or,this Niman was and is a noperative using a splottchy trail, that is difficult to nail down.

Or, I'm just a nut.

But,given his anthrax and SARS footprints, he is a player in two of the biggest "bioterrorism" hits on America.

To summarize, I will never send anyone any Freep Mail, I will never answer any freepmail,and I am just Betty Jo, a goofy old freepin granny.

[CobaltBlue]

Doctor Niman's comments:

>>>>I am also part of a group of posters that have an interest in SARS on Free Republic, a conservative website that has a more than trivial number of nutballs<<

You left out more than a trivial number of chronic googlers. Only a chronic googler would come up with a 1988 European patent

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/931520/posts?q=1&&p...

and miss 9 US patents, including one issued less than 2 months ago

http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=H...<<

http://www.siliconinvestor.com/stocktalk/msg.gsp?msgid=19050921

>>I am also part of a group of posters that have an interest in SARS on Free Republic, a conservative website that has a more than trivial number of nutballs<<

You also left out conspiracy theorists. If you want to get them going, tell them that I published a paper with Ian Wilson

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&d...

right after he solved the structure of the influenza hemagglutinin molecule while post doc-ing in Don Wiley's lab

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&d...

You can throw in the fact that I created the flu monoclonal (including 12CA5)

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&d...

which is used by almost every major molecular biology research institution in the world for epitope tagging experiments (try googling combinations of epitope tag and monoclonal).

The patents cover virtually any monoclonal antibody made against a synthetic peptide.<<

http://www.siliconinvestor.com/stocktalk/msg.gsp?msgid=19050927

My guess is that you'll need to click on the links to Silicon Investor to fully parse the URLs that Dr. Niman posted.

[CobaltBlue]

>>My guess is that you'll need to click on the links to Silicon Investor to fully parse the URLs that Dr. Niman posted.<<

Correct.

By the way, Silicon Investor was recently bought out by Bob Zumbrunnen (very ironic if you know the history of Silicon Investor) who is now selling lifetime memberships, but after July 31, no more lifetime memberships, so get them while you can.

You don't need to be a member to read posts, you can lurk for free.

[CobaltBlue]

>>My guess is that you'll need to click on the links to Silicon Investor to fully parse the URLs that Dr. Niman posted.<<

Correct.

You don't need to be a member to read posts, you can lurk for free.

[Betty Jo]

Oh, this gets funny!

The three US patents that I speed read about were simply citing Niman from the 80"s.

I did not see one patent that named him as the inventor.

So, I guess my European Patent from the 80's isnt so bad .

[CobaltBlue]

Dr. Niman has nine US patents.

1
6,551,789

Process for characterizing a biological sample using patterns of oncogene expression

2
5,985,587

Polypeptide-induced monoclonal receptors to protein ligands

3
5,972,629

Method for characterizing antigenic reactivity of biological sample

4
5,786,178

Polypeptide-induced monoclonal receptors to protein ligands

5
5,733,738

Polypeptide-induced monoclonal receptors to protein ligands

6
5,591,587

Polypeptide-induced monoclonal receptors to protein ligands

7
5,563,247

Monoclonal antibodies to oncoproteins and methods of making monoclonal antibodies

8
5,030,565

Polypeptide-induced monoclonal receptors to protein ligands

9
5,015,571

Polypeptide-induced monoclonal receptors to protein ligands

[Betty Jo]

Ok, I found some Niman patents.

I stand corrected re my last post.

But these still do not answer the questions of why is he at the Shriners Burn Center in Boston as a "surgery instructor"?

He is looking as though he is pushing stocks that will financially enrich him,without publicly stating his connections to them.

He is a leading "expert" voice on SARS.If,his stocks coincide with the direction of SARS meds research, shouldnt that be known?

[Betty Jo]

Here goes my goofiness again!

When I search Scripps Research Institute and Niman, I get one hit out of 45,000.

And it is a post from Niman on Silicon that mentions Scripps,having nothing to do with Niman ever being at Scripps.

I'll keep googling.

[CobaltBlue]

I have no idea what Dr. Niman's research is about, really. I don't know a monoclonal antibody from an oncogene. I understand biology down to the cellular level, but Dr. Niman understands cell biology down to the molecular level.

I see no indication that he is working on a test for SARS or a vaccine for SARS. He seems to be interested in SARS morphology and mutations as an intellectual exercise, BWDIK?

[CobaltBlue]

If you look at the US patents, you'll see that the Scripps Institute is the assignee for all of them. That usually means that he came up with the idea while on the Scripps payroll, and typically that means that they actually own the work. They paid for the research, they own it. Hope he gets some of the money.

The foreign patent you found shows Ligand as the assignee. Dr. Niman started Progenx which became Ligand but he doesn't appear to a Ligand insider anymore.

[Betty Jo]

Thank you !

I love it that you have done so much to help me.

In my mind,and maybe thats the only place it is,something is off here.

His touting of Ligand while not mentioning that he was an inventor of one of their patents, which I suppose would enrich him,and the new deal with Seragen, which is heavily Canadian,(SARS),still bothers.

I wont bug you anymore about Niman.

I'll just keep freepin and googlin till I find what I'm looking for.

Thanks!

[Domestic Church]

" If you want to get them going, tell them that I published a paper with Ian Wilson right after he solved the structure of the influenza hemagglutinin molecule while post doc-ing in Don Wiley's lab"

Now your giving me goosebumps...any St. Jude hospital connection?

[TaxRelief]

Cobalt Blue is turning into Translucent Pale Blue. What do you do? Just cut and paste the responses that Niman provides? This ridiculous game playing is getting old, and your whole Niman defense is SO OBVIOUSLY CONTRIVED.

How about if we get back to the real meat of things? And keep the "experts" in the medical posts and the bio labs, and out of Freerepublic?

[Betty Jo]

If Don Wiley was alive today,I believe he would be doing what Niman is.

So many people have said Wiley wouldn't have been a good target for the terrs.

But as you know, he would have been one of the best,that is someone who knows viruses and vaccines and all the rest.

I havn't found fault with th science of Niman, just the internet presence of him.

Obviously light years ahead of me in intelligence and accomplishments,I hope he continues to de-code SARS.

I also want him to talk about what he does every day at Shriners Burn Center,and is the American tax dollar, or something close to that paying him.

[IYAAYAS]

Don't forget Shriners is run by the highest level MASONS!!!

[Betty Jo]

I hope you are kidding!

My quest on the Shriners Burn Center is that Nimans multiple career paths and employers has ended at least as far as I can tell, his adress and phone numbers are at Shriners,there.

I just want to know what a bioengineering surgery instructor does at this hosp.

Again, Niman is quoted all over the world on SARS.

I want to know everyting I can about the man who may save my life someday.

[IYAAYAS]

No, I'm not kidding. The highest level one can reach in the masons organization is to become a shriner, hence the name of the hospitals.

[Betty Jo]

"Also,NAID is using existing funding mechanisms, such as the contract with St.Jude's Hospital to help support the development of other sophisticated diagnostic tools."

http://usinfo.state.gov/topical/global/hiv/03050903.htm

St. Jude's has these gov contracts, and I imagine Shriner's Burn Center, where Niman is does also.

Again I ask, is Niman under some kind of tax $$$$$ SARS contract?

[Domestic Church]

I was trying to tiptoe around the masonic connection...high level masonry is a whole 'nother( global) ballpark in the deconstruction of western civilization...read any Malachi Martin lately?

[IYAAYAS]

No, I haven't read any Malachi, ever. Did a quick google though and it looks interesting. I'm in need of a new book, care to recomend one of his? Was he a catholic priest?