"Bird Flu Drug Tamiflu's Primary Ingredient Washed Out in Mudslides"

Read the full article in Avant News.

"With bird flu, also known as avian flu, now confirmed to have mutated into a form that can be transmitted human-to-human, international disease control agencies are concerned by a new report that virtually all of this year's star anise crop, a vital component of Tamiflu grown only in four provinces of China, has been wiped out in a series of mudslides brought on by unseasonably strong tropical storms in the region. Tamiflu, the antiviral medication produced by Roche of Switzerland and one of the few treatments available for those who have already contracted bird flu, requires star anise, specifically Shikimic acid, a star anise derivative, as a primary ingredient."