H3N2 News and Research

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Influenza A virus subtype H3N2 (also H3N2) is a subtype of viruses that cause influenza (flu). H3N2 viruses can infect birds and mammals. In birds, humans, and pigs, the virus has mutated into many strains. H3N2 is increasingly abundant in seasonal influenza, which kills an estimated 36,000 people in the United States each year.

Scientists use computer model to explore geographical origins of influenza virus

A computer model developed by scientists at the University of Chicago shows that small increases in transmission rates of the seasonal influenza A virus (H3N2) can lead to rapid evolution of new strains that spread globally through human populations.

14 Sep 2016

H3N2v-neutralizing antibodies produced from human subjects given candidate vaccine

Influenza A viruses are responsible for seasonal disease outbreaks in humans. Influenza A also circulates among bird and some mammal populations and periodically crosses between species.

8 Jul 2016

Novel strategy to predict antigenic evolution of circulating influenza viruses

During the 2014-15 flu season, the poor match between the virus used to make the world's vaccine stocks and the circulating seasonal virus yielded a vaccine that was less than 20 percent effective.

24 May 2016

Minor flu strains carry bigger viral punch

Minor variants of flu strains, which are not typically targeted in vaccines, carry a bigger viral punch than previously realized, a team of scientists has found. Its research, which examined samples from the 2009 flu pandemic in Hong Kong, shows that these minor strains are transmitted along with the major strains and can replicate and elude immunizations.

5 Jan 2016

Simple approach to predict viral evolution may improve vaccine efficacy

New results from a study performed at the University of Helsinki suggest that genomic information from circulating influenza viruses can help in producing more efficient seasonal vaccines. The researchers were able to develop a simple approach for reliable real-time tracking and prediction of viral evolution based on whole-genome sequences of influenza viruses.

8 Dec 2015

Get your flu shot before fall festivities, says Loyola infectious disease specialist

While planning your family's fall festivities this month, add the flu shot to the list. Then follow through with a visit to your doctor to make sure everyone is protected for the flu season. October is the recommended month to receive the vaccine for your best shot at preventing the flu.

13 Oct 2015

New test capable of detecting all viruses that affect people and animals

A new, super-sensitive test has been developed that can detect virtually any virus that causes illness in humans and animals, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

1 Oct 2015

New test identifies viruses that infect people and animals

A new test detects virtually any virus that infects people and animals, according to research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, where the technology was developed.

30 Sep 2015

New study affirms value of influenza vaccination among older people

A new study of the records of millions of nursing home residents affirms the value of influenza vaccination among the elderly. The Brown University analysis found that between 2000 and 2009, the better matched the vaccine was for the influenza strain going around, the fewer nursing home residents died or were hospitalized.

25 Aug 2015

GSK starts shipping FLUARIX QUADRIVALENT (Influenza Vaccine) to US healthcare providers

GSK announced today it has begun shipping FLUARIX QUADRIVALENT (Influenza Vaccine) doses to US healthcare providers, following licensing and lot-release approval from the US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.

16 Jul 2015

New dissolvable microneedle patch could make flu vaccination easier, safer and less painful

Flu vaccines delivered using microneedles that dissolve in the skin can protect people against infection even better than the standard needle-delivered vaccine, according to new research published in Biomaterials. The authors of the study, from Osaka University in Japan, say their dissolvable patch - the only vaccination system of its kind - could make vaccination easier, safer and less painful.

15 Jul 2015

BiondVax’s universal influenza vaccine meets safety and immunogenicity endpoints

BiondVax Pharmaceuticals Ltd. today announced positive preliminary results from its BVX-006 Phase II clinical trial of M-001, BiondVax's candidate for a universal influenza vaccine.

30 Jun 2015

Wistar Institute researchers identify specific mutations responsible for ineffectiveness of flu vaccines

Viruses like influenza have the ability to mutate over time, and given that the flu vaccines administered during the 2014-2015 season were largely ineffective at preventing the spread of the flu, it appears the virus that recently circulated had taken on mutations not accounted for when last year's vaccine was developed.

26 Jun 2015

Analysis of transportation data could help predict spread of flu epidemic across the U.S.

To predict how a seasonal influenza epidemic will spread across the United States, one should focus more on the mobility of people than on their geographic proximity, a new study suggests.

19 Jun 2015

Cities with Super Bowl teams see big spike in flu illness, deaths

Boston and Seattle football fans beware! Cities with teams in the Super Bowl see a big spike in flu deaths, according to a new Tulane University study.

31 Jan 2015

Research shows effectiveness of Tamiflu

Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended the use of antiviral drugs to help treat influenza, in a year when the available vaccine is not a good match for the current strain.

30 Jan 2015

Current flu vaccine still offers protection, says Loyola infectious disease specialist

In baseball, three strikes and you're out. The most common annual vaccine targets three strains of flu virus. This year, two vaccine strains are spot on and successfully matched. One strain is partially mismatched, but still believed to offer partial coverage for that strain. The current flu vaccine is still in the game and, more importantly, keeping people well and on the playing field, says a Loyola University Medical Center infectious disease specialist.

8 Jan 2015

Protein Sciences earns Frost & Sullivan 2013 Global New Product Innovation Award

Based on its recent analysis of the influenza vaccines market, Frost & Sullivan recognises Protein Sciences with the 2013 Global New Product Innovation Award. Flublok is the world's first recombinant protein vaccine for the prevention of seasonal influenza disease to gain U.S. FDA approval.

29 Dec 2014

Roche announces launch of cobas Liat System for on-demand testing in different settings

Roche today announced the launch of the cobas Liat System—a fast, compact , easy to use, molecular diagnostic platform, designed for on-demand testing in physician clinics, pharmacies and hospital lab settings.

16 Dec 2014

Simple tips to keep families safe from flu

The flu, or seasonal influenza virus, is extremely unpredictable. Its severity can vary widely from one season to the next depending on many things, including the strains of flu spreading, availability of vaccines, how many people get vaccinated and how well the flu vaccine is matched to the flu viruses circulating each season.

10 Dec 2014