Flu News and Research

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Swine flu preoccupies world health leaders

It is expected that the upcoming World Health Organisation's (WHO) annual assembly will be dominated this year by the emergence and spread of the new influenza virus H1N1 (swine flu).

14 May 2009

Baylor Research Institute receives multi-million dollar grant to develop flu vaccine

Scientists at Baylor Institute for Immunology Research (BIIR) in Dallas, part of Baylor Research Institute (BRI) and the Baylor Health Care System, announced today that they received a renewal of a multi-million dollar grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to design new vaccines to prevent influenza - including swine flu (H1N1).

13 May 2009

Obama administration 'wants to go slow' on HIV/AIDS efforts, editorial says

"The road to ending AIDS comes with warning sign: Caution -- Politics Ahead. Just ask President Obama, who's getting a crash-course introduction," a San Francisco Chronicle editorial says.

13 May 2009

New mathematical model predicts immune response to influenza A virus

Researchers at the University of Rochester have developed a mathematical model to predict immune responses to infection with influenza A viruses, including novel viruses such as the emergent 2009 influenza A (H1N1). This model examines the contributions of specific sets of immune cells in fighting influenza A virus.

13 May 2009

Influenza pandemic planning needed to ensure that pregnant women and newborns receive priority treatment

Pregnant women and newborns are at greatest risk in a flu epidemic, but more planning must be done to ensure that they receive priority treatment should an outbreak occur, according to a University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) and University of Pittsburgh study.

13 May 2009

The latest news on swine flu

The latest update (# 26) from the World Health Organisation (WHO) reports that as of the 12th of May 2009, 30 countries have officially reported 5,251 cases of influenza A (H1N1) infection.

13 May 2009

Bacteria create aquatic superbugs in waste treatment plants

For bacteria in wastewater treatment plants, the stars align perfectly to create a hedonistic mating ground for antibiotic-resistant superbugs eventually discharged into streams and lakes.

13 May 2009

Simple interventions could contain flu spread – focus on children

Although many have touted strategies from travel avoidance to Tamiflu to halt the spread of H1N1 flu or swine flu, a large body of evidence from the Cochrane Library suggests that concentrating on children's hygiene might be the best way to reduce the spread of respiratory illnesses.

12 May 2009

A potentially better way to make flu virus vaccines

A team of Princeton University scientists may have found a better way to make a vaccine against the flu virus.

12 May 2009

Research looks at the human factor in spread of pandemic illness

Industrial engineers Sandra Garrett of Clemson University and Barrett Caldwell of Purdue University have proposed a new system to warn of an impending pandemic by monitoring signals in human behavior. The system could result in using a simple icon on a television screen to warn of future phases of an outbreak of an illness such as the flu

12 May 2009

Obama ensures Hispanic community they will be included in H1N1 flu outbreak efforts

In a town hall-style meeting at the White House on Friday, President Obama ensured Hispanic community leaders and advocates that the U.S. will not alienate the group as a result of the recent H1N1 flu outbreak believed to have started in Mexico, the AP/Las Vegas Sun reports. Obama also assured the group that they will receive treatment related to the virus regardless of legal status.

12 May 2009

Early findings about H1N1 pandemic potential

Early findings about the emerging pandemic of a new strain of influenza A (H1N1) in Mexico are published in Science.

12 May 2009

Swine flu could come round again!

The Centres for Disease Protection and Control (CDC) says outbreaks of the new H1N1 swine flu continue to spread across the United States and the swine influenza virus is expected to spread to all 50 states and to cause many infections ranging from mild to severe.

11 May 2009

Swine flu now in 29 countries and continuing to spread

The latest update (# 24), from the World Health Organisation on influenza A H1N1 (swine flu) says as of the 10th May 2009, 29 countries have now officially reported cases of human infection.

11 May 2009

Africa prepares for possible H1N1 flu outbreak amid concerns about HIV/AIDS, other diseases

African countries are preparing for the possibility that the H1N1 flu virus could expand in the continent, which already is experiencing epidemics of diseases such as HIV/AIDS and malaria, the AP/San Francisco Chronicle reports.

7 May 2009

Study reveals current multi-component vaccines may need reworking

Current strategies for designing vaccines against HIV and cancers, for instance, may enable some components in multi-component vaccines to cancel the effect of others on the immune system, eliminating their ability to provide protection, according to an article to be published shortly in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

7 May 2009

Pandemic influenza preparedness in Latin America: analysis of national strategic plans, health policy and planning

An analysis of pandemic preparedness plans from Latin American countries has indicated that although most now have national strategic plans in place, it is the wealthiest countries that tend to have the most complete plans.

7 May 2009

FDA licenses Sanofi Pasteur's new flu vaccine manufacturing facility

Sanofi Pasteur announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has licensed its new influenza vaccine manufacturing facility.

7 May 2009

Wistar Institute obtains U.S. patent for a novel synthetic vaccine technology

The Wistar Institute today obtained a U.S. patent for a novel synthetic vaccine technology with the potential for further development into a universal flu vaccine which could eliminate the need for annual flu shots and protect against future flu pandemics.

6 May 2009

FDA approves new flu vaccine production facility

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced that it has approved a new manufacturing facility used to produce influenza virus vaccines. The facility is approved for seasonal influenza vaccine production and could be used for the production of vaccine against the new 2009 H1N1 influenza strain.

6 May 2009