Infection Control Today Magazine

Influenza Virus

Study Offers New Information for the Fight Against Influenza

Ralph Tripp is the Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Vaccine Development in the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine. The influenza virus can rapidly evolve from one form to another, complicating the effectiveness of vaccines and antiviral drugs used to treat it. ...More
2 weeks ago
Posted in News
Why Some Influenza Virus Subtypes Die Out

Every so often we hear about a new strain of influenza virus which has appeared and in some cases may sweep across the globe in a pandemic, much as the H1N1 virus did last year. What happens to the old seasonal viruses? In an opinion piece in the current issue of mBio, ...More
November 8, 2011
Posted in News, Infections & Pathogens
Scientists Report Rare Occurrence of Humans Harboring Two Strains of Flu at the Same Time

Researchers conducting influenza-like illness surveillance in Cambodia have confirmed a rare incidence of individuals becoming infected with a seasonal influenza and the pandemic strain at the same time, a reminder of the ongoing risk of distinct flu viruses combining in ...More
November 3, 2011
Posted in News, Infections & Pathogens
New Material for Air Cleaner Filters Captures Flu Viruses

Scientists are reporting development of a new material for the fiber in face masks, air conditioning filters and air cleaning filters that captures influenza viruses before they can get into people’s eyes, noses and mouths and cause infection. The report on the fiber ...More
November 2, 2011
Posted in News, Infections & Pathogens
Researchers Find Wide Gap in Immune Responses of People Exposed to Flu Virus

Why do some individuals who take every precaution still get the flu, while others never even get the sniffles? It comes down to a person's immune system response to the flu virus, says Alfred Hero, professor at the University of Michigan College of Engineering. In one of ...More
August 26, 2011
Posted in News, Infections & Pathogens
Discovery Explains Why Influenza B Virus Exclusively Infects Humans

Researchers at Rutgers University and the University of Texas at Austin have reported a discovery that could help scientists develop drugs to fight seasonal influenza epidemics caused by the common influenza B strain. Their discovery also helps explain how influenza B is ...More
August 25, 2011
Posted in News, Infections & Pathogens
Loyola Expert Says Same Vaccine, Different Year But Beware the Flu

Each year, 200,000 Americans are hospitalized due to flu-related complications. That number can rise or fall – often dramatically – based on the effectiveness of the selected flu vaccine, according to Dr. Jorge Parada, director of infection prevention and control at Loyola ...More
August 3, 2011
Posted in News, Infections & Pathogens
Influenza Virus Vaccine for the 2011-2012 Season Announced

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)'s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) met in Bethesda, Md., on Feb. 25, 2011, to select the influenza viruses for the composition of the influenza vaccine for the 2011-2012 U.S. influenza season. During ...More
July 15, 2011
Posted in News, Infections & Pathogens
When Flu Strains 'Hook Up,' Dangerous Progeny Can Result

A new University of Maryland-led study finds that 'sex' between the virus responsible for the 2009 flu pandemic (H1N1) and a common type of avian flu virus (H9N2) can produce offspring -- new combined flu viruses -- with the potential for creating a new influenza pandemic. ...More
July 13, 2011
Posted in News, Infections & Pathogens
Scientists Design New Anti-Flu Virus Proteins Using Computational Methods

A research article May 12 in Science demonstrates the use of computational methods to design new antiviral proteins not found in nature, but capable of targeting specific surfaces of flu virus molecules. One goal of such protein design would be to block molecular mechanisms ...More
May 13, 2011
Posted in News

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