Prior to this request, China claimed that despite numerous outbreaks of H5N1 in poultry flocks, leading to the culling of more than 1 million birds, no humans had been affected in the country.

Also in China, the Ministry of Agriculture has reprimanded 13 companies involved in the production and distribution of fake avian-influenza vaccines.

Meanwhile:

-- Indonesia has confirmed its fifth death from avian flu. The 19-year-old woman died Oct. 28, but the multiple tests needed to confirm the presence of bird flu meant that confirmation could not be issued until Monday, officials said.

-- Twelve birds in Russia's southern Urals have been confirmed to have died of bird flu. The confirmation led to the culling of 98 birds, but no humans appear to have been affected.

-- Following last week's estimates of the regional costs of bird flu, the World Bank Monday told a WHO avian-influenza summit in Geneva that the global cost of a human pandemic has been estimated to be $800 billion.

WHO Director Jong-Wook Lee told the conference that he was certain that the H5N1 virus would combine with a form of influenza transmissible between humans and start a deadly pandemic.

"We do not know when it will happen, but we do know that it will happen," said Lee.

-- The increasing demand for Tamiflu has led to soaring demand for star anise, a spice often found in Chinese cooking.

Tamiflu uses shikimic acid, most commonly found in star anise, as its base. As global demand for Tamiflu has increased, the availability of star anise has fallen, leading to a twelve-fold price increase currently at $500 a kilogram.

The slow growing period required by the herb means that natural supplies cannot be increased in line with demand. However, John Frost, a chemist at Michigan State University, has developed a synthetic form of shikimic acid, used by Roche in the past.

Amid reports that Roche has recently cut back on the use of his method, Frost is starting his own company for the production of shikimic acid, having said that there is no reason for lack of the compound to be the cause of a production bottleneck.

-- A study at Seoul National University in South Korea has discovered a potentially powerful ally in the global fight against a possible avian-flu pandemic: cabbage. Fermented cabbage, anyway.

Thirteen chickens with bird flu were fed an extract of kimchi, a Korean delicacy based on fermented cabbage. Within a week, 11 of the birds showed signs of recovering.

The study was too small to be scientifically conclusive, but current indications are positive.

And, for those unable to find kimchi, sauerkraut is an acceptable alternative. The lactic-acid bacteria found in fermented cabbage products such as kimchi and sauerkraut is believed to be the cause of the speedy recovery.

-- A Pennsylvania doctor believes he holds the key to preventing a global influenza pandemic -- any pandemic.

Dr. Dave Woynarowski says, "We have been quietly making a product called Immune Booster for over a year now. The main ingredient is a highly concentrated, purified elderberry extract.

"Elderberry extract was found to be effective against every strain of flu in the subject population. The other key thing is the subjects were real people, not just lab rats or viruses in a dish.

"It appears that it may actually coat the virus and prevent it from spreading. It reduces the symptoms of flu and I feel if you are taking this product on a regular basis you may never even get the flu.

"Flu virus, especially bird flu ... can mutate very quickly. The virus you get the shot for is based on what was happening in China earlier this year. By the time the flu gets here it may be a very different virus and you may not be protected."

It should be stressed that there have been no studies examining the effectiveness of elderberry in countering avian influenza.

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