China to give bird flu samples to WHO

China will supply bird flue virus samples to the WHO, said WHO official to Beijing on Tuesday. The first 20 samples will be delivered to WHO's lab within a couple of weeks.

Dr. Julie Lyn Hall, Infectious Diseases Alert and Response Coordinator, attached great importance to the bird flue virus samples provided by China. She said the samples would help develop antiviral drugs.

According to Dr. Hall, the WHO and China have reached an agreement on the intellectual property issues concerning bird flue virus samples. China will supply bird flue virus samples to the WHO for them to develop vaccine and antiviral drugs. The first group of samples will be delivered to the WHO's laboratories in Japan, Hong Kong, Australia or the UK.

By People's Daily Online