Mainland, Taiwan share H7N9 virus strain

BEIJING - The Chinese mainland will provide Taiwan with human H7N9 avian influenza virus strain, allowing the two sides to jointly explore new detection and prevention methods, mainland health authorities said Thursday.

Fight against H7N9 bird flu

Under the application of the Taiwan Disease Control Bureau, a batch of H7N9 virus strain provided by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CCDCP) is expected to be transported to Taiwan on Friday, according to the CCDCP.

The virus strain have been properly packaged in the Chinese mainland and are ready to be transported to Taiwan, according to the center.

The first batch of such strain provided by the CCDCP were transported to the World Health Organization (WHO) on April 8, according to the center.

"Although the virus has not been found to have been transmitted to areas outside of the Chinese mainland, we reported the situation to the WHO in a timely manner," said Shu Yuelong, an official with the CCDCP.

Shu added that sharing the virus strain globally will help prevent and control the spread of the virus.