Fw: new scientist

Originally from: Mary Critchley
                        
See last bit.

Foot and mouth disease strikes World Cup host

http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99992263

16:40 08 May 02

NewScientist.com news service

Foot and mouth disease has broken out in South Korea, four weeks before
football's World Cup is due to begin there. Korean officials are

feverishly

trying to stamp out the disease, especially as one of the venues for the
tournament – Daejeon – is in the path of the outbreak.

With twelve national teams and several hundred thousand supporters due to
converge on Korea at the end of May, there are fears that some could carry
the virus back home, or to FMD-free Japan, which is co-hosting the
tournament.

David Paton, at the UK's Institute for Animal Health at Pirbright says: "I
would advise people to avoid contact with farm animals in Korea, and when
they return home. And they shouldn't bring any animal products back with
them."

The 2001 outbreak of FMD in the UK led to the slaughter of millions of
animals. Numerous sporting events were cancelled to try to halt the spread
of the disease. But Andreas Herren, spokesman for the world football
association FIFA, says those were mostly sports that involved animals,

such

as horse racing. "The World Cup will go ahead as planned," he told New
Scientist.

Blowing in the wind

The first FMD outbreak was in early May, at Anseong, 100 kilometres south

of

the capital, Seoul. All 8420 pigs on the farm were destroyed and movements
of animals and vehicles for 20 km around were limited.

However, unlike in the UK, the Korea outbreak has infected pigs, which

cough

out 100 times more virus than sheep or cattle. Soon after the first
outbreak, another farm at Jinchon was infected. It was 25 km further

south –

outside the restricted zone – suggesting airborne spread.

Daejeon, the venue for matches involving South Africa, Spain, Poland and

the

US is 30 km south of Jinchon. But if this outbreak strikes throughout the
country, as the one in 2000 did, all 10 Korean venues could be surrounded

by

sick animals.

Joint favourites France and Brazil begin the tournament in Korea and will
almost certainly progress to matches in Japan, taking their travelling
supporters with them.

Jabs versus slaughter

The World Organisation for Animal Health in Paris has confirmed that the
virus is the Pan-Asian O virus that hit the UK in 2001, and Korea and

Japan

in 2000.

Korea contained that outbreak by vaccinating animals, but had recently
stopped vaccinating again. Pirbright plans to sequence the virus from the
two outbreaks. This could show whether the current one is a fresh

invasion,

or a leftover that somehow survived vaccination – though proving that

would

be difficult.

The result could affect whether countries use vaccination or mass

slaughter

to control FMD outbreaks in future.

Debora MacKenzie