Bird flu detection 'in two hours'

It currently takes up to a week to identify different types of bird flu, including the potentially fatal H5N1 strain.

But academics at Nottingham Trent University say they are now helping to develop a portable machine the size of a briefcase which can be used at the scene of a suspected outbreak.

They are also trying to build a model that can carry out the same task in hospitals in an effort to speed up the time it takes to diagnose suspected human victims.

The technology works by recognising molecules from a swab of human saliva or animal tissue, before identifying if it is infected with bird flu and if so which strain is present.

The university says the technology will mean officials can set up exclusion zones and cull infected birds far quicker.

Dr Alan McNally, a former avian flu researcher for the Government who is working on the project, said: "The key thing about this is that the process will be fully automated so there is no requirement for a skilled person to use the technology.

"There's nothing to say that a veterinary lab assistant couldn't go out and swab birds and run the test. At present tests have to be sent to a lab where you need fully trained personnel and that's where the hold-up occurs."

The £2.3 million project, known as Portfastflu, is being funded by the European Union.

The university says that so far tens of millions of birds have died or been slaughtered as a result of bird flu, while the H5N1 strain has officially claimed 243 lives from 385 confirmed cases.