July 27, 2005

China's regulations cause laboratory to suspend bird flu studies
 

A Chinese laboratory jointly sponsored and run by the University of Hong Kong and Shantou University, had suspended studies on the H5N1 strain while it applied for government permission. However, feedback from the laboratory stated it was in full compliance with the World Health Organization's safety guidelines for work on bird flu.

This was in response to new regulations by the Chinese government, issued after an article from the Joint Influenza Research Center about infected wild birds in western China was released. The government criticised the validity of the article and reportedly triggered fears of a crackdown on academic freedom and independent research into bird flu.

The new regulations required laboratories to obtain government permission before carrying out research on deadly pathogens, and restricted H5N1 studies to three government laboratories.