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FRIDAY,APRIL4,2003
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Scientists CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1A
Komar said research in these areas improved the understanding of the ecology of tropical areas and could help predict a new introduction of the virus in the states.
The KU researchers collected the birds using mist nets made of black nylon that stretch seven feet high and 35 feet long.
Blood samples and tissue were sent to a laboratory at Colorado State and were tested in February.
Barry Beaty, professor at Colorado State, runs the lab that performed the tests on the bird specimens.
This is the first time a virus was found in a bird, but there have been reported cases of a person in the Cayman Islands who had the virus, Komar said.
"It confirmed the results that
the West Nile virus seemed to be in the Caribbean," he said.
Kansas researchers became involved in the study because A. Townsend Peterson, curatorofbirds at the Natural History Museum, was interested in the spread of West Nile virus, Komar said. The research was sponsored by the National Science Foundation.
West Nile virus poses a potential threat to endangered birds in the Dominican Republic. Research in those areas could provide answers as to which bird populations are at risk, said Nicholas Komar, microbiologist
for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"There are numerous endangered species in the Dominican Republic," Nicholas Komar said. "That's true for most tropical islands. Island species are much more sensitive to extinction."
The team of researchers have more trips planned to Central America and other areas of the Caribbean.
The bird specimens are preserved in cabinets in the Natural History Museum. Oliver Komar said.
"They will be here preserved for future studies. The same birds are useful for many more studies in the future," he said.
- Edited by Ryan Wood
West Nile
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1A
worry out there about this than there needs to be."
That being said, any time an illness is fatal to even one person, there is a public health concern, Komar said.
West Nile is particularly dangerous to the elderly or those with weakened immune systems, he said.
In light of that risk, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment has come up with a set of simple suggestions aimed at preventing the spread of West Nile. Those suggestions include:
- wearing long sleeves when outdoors if possible.
- using DEET or some sort of insect repellent containing DEET.
- limiting going outside at peak times for mosquitoes such as early morning and early evening.
"The second people can do is to take a look at their environment and remove any standing water in areas around the house that might be a mosquito breeding ground," said department representative Sharon Watson. "There is some concern that mosquitoes that carried the virus last fall could have laid eggs that are already affected with the virus. But the more likely suspects are the migratory birds."
"There is no 'too early' to start reporting dead birds," he said. "There was a case reported in Connecticut of a hawk that died in February, so
That's where Komar and his colleagues at the Biodiversity Research Center come in. The group recently identified the virus in migratory birds in the Dominican Republic. In the past, the group also tracked the virus by testing dead birds in Kansas, though the department contracted the work with Kansas State University this year.
that shows there is some transmission cycle through the winter. Report dead birds any time. Everybody's got to try to be a scientist on this."
Tracking and testing dead birds is one of the most effective ways of following the spread of West Nile virus, Komar said.
According to scientists from the department, every Kansas county except two reported at least one case of West Nile in either birds, horses or humans. Across the state, there were 794 horses reportedly infected with the virus last year, and 22 human cases, mostly concentrated in south central and northeast Kansas.
Mark Hecker, maintenance superintendent with the Lawrence Parks and Recreation department, said his department planned to treat areas of standing water with a larvicide designed to kill mosquito eggs before they hatch. Those are the same precautionary steps his department took last year.
Dead birds can be reported to the KU division of ornithology at www.nhm.ku.edu/birds.
—Edited by Ryan Wood
Twins
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1A
CDC's journal, Emerging Infectious Diseases on their collaborative research. Their article is about their research in the Dominican Republic last November.
"I think that's probably typical of twins who grew up in the same surroundings to share a lot of interests."
Nicholas Komar Centers for Disease Control microbiologist
Though the twins both work on the West Nile virus, they have different areas of specialty.
Nicholas works with vertebrate hosts and how the virus persists in the environment. Oliver studies endangered species of birds in order to create plans of conservation.
"West Nile is a biological problem just like any other ecological problem." Oliver said. "We love doing science, asking questions and finding the answers to them."
The twins not only do research on the same subject matter, but share another commonality as well.
"We're both married to Salvadorian women who are sisters." Nicholas said.
Oliver met his wife at his brother's wedding.
"I went to the wedding in San Salvador. I was the best man. Six years later I married the maid of honor," Oliver said.
Nicholas said he does not find these commonalities unusual.
"I think that's probably typical of twins who grew up in the same surroundings to share a lot of interests," Nicholas said. "We have similar personalities."
- Edited by Ryan Wood
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