Influenza News and Research

Latest Influenza News and Research

Mass. bill would mandate docs to check database before prescribing pain meds

The legislation is expected to come up for a vote in the Massachusetts Senate Thursday. In Florida, the legislature killed a bill to take away prescription rights from doctors awaiting trial on pill-trafficking charges.

2 Feb 2012

ACIP recommends changes in 2012 Recommended Adult Immunization Schedule

The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices now recommends routine HPV vaccination for males aged 11 to 12 years and catch-up vaccination for males aged 13 to 21. These are just two of the changes to the 2012 Recommended Adult Immunization Schedule being published February 1 in Annals of Internal Medicine, the flagship journal of the American College of Physicians.

2 Feb 2012

Natural resistance to flu could hold key to universal vaccine

Researchers have found that on infecting 41 healthy volunteers with different strains of flu virus, those with higher levels of a specific type of white blood cell were less likely to develop severe illness. Now the team of researchers hopes to mimic the natural resistance shown by some of the volunteers, by creating a vaccine that boosts levels of a particular subset of the 'T-cells'.

1 Feb 2012

Bird flu virus research and need for censorship

A group of scientists have been working on a genetically modified strain of bird flu. A federal advisory board declared Tuesday that the details of the research are a “grave concern” to public safety and should be kept under wraps.

1 Feb 2012

Peptides linked with internal flu viral structures can help develop universal vaccine

Researchers at the University of Southampton, University of Oxford and Retroscreeen Virology Ltd have discovered a series of peptides, found on the internal structures of influenza viruses that could lead to the development of a universal vaccine for influenza, one that gives people immunity against all strains of the disease, including seasonal, avian, and swine flu.

1 Feb 2012

Media outlets continue to publish expert opinion regarding H5N1 bird flu research

The PBS NewsHour blog "The Rundown" features excerpts from interviews with three experts discussing the recent debate over research conducted on the H5N1 bird flu virus.

1 Feb 2012

NanoViricides files FluCide pre-IND briefing document with the FDA

NanoViricides, Inc. announced today that it has submitted a pre-IND briefing document to the US FDA. This submission provides the required information for the Company's highly effective anti-influenza drug candidate, FluCide, in support of a pre-IND Meeting.

1 Feb 2012

Hand hygiene, surgical masks can cut spread of flu-like illnesses upto 75%

Masks and hand hygiene could cut the spread of flu-like symptoms up to 75 percent, a University of Michigan study found.

1 Feb 2012

Viewpoints: Contraceptive controversy; Revising mental health definitions

It was good news that the Obama administration withstood pressure from Roman Catholic bishops and social conservatives to deny contraceptive coverage for millions of American women who work for religiously affiliated employers. Kathleen Sebelius, the Health and Human Services secretary, rejected broad exemptions from a new rule requiring all health plans to cover birth control, without a deductible or co-payment.

31 Jan 2012

Experts to discuss controversial studies on avian flu virus at live event

On February 2 from 6pm to 8pm, the Emerging Infectious Diseases & Microbiology Discussion Group of the New York Academy of Sciences presents Dual Use Research: H5N1 Influenza Virus and Beyond, a discussion between scientists, publishers, and legal experts that will explore the myriad issues surrounding the impending publication of these two studies and measures that will need to be undertaken to ensure the security of future such research.

31 Jan 2012

Bird flu detected in Victoria spurs action

A bird flu outbreak has been detected at two Victorian farms and at least 10,000 ducks will have to be destroyed. The two farms are about 25km apart in an area north of Melbourne, but officials are keeping the exact location private.

30 Jan 2012

Researchers study new strategies to treat patients with influenza

Influenza virus can rapidly evolve from one form to another, complicating the effectiveness of vaccines and anti-viral drugs used to treat it. By first understanding the complex host cell pathways that the flu uses for replication, University of Georgia researchers are finding new strategies for therapies and vaccines, according to a study published in the January issue of the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

30 Jan 2012

Only one in five young adults received a swine flu shot during 2009-2010 epidemic

Only about one in five young adults in their late 30s received a flu shot during the 2009-2010 swine flu epidemic, according to a University of Michigan report that details the behavior and attitudes of Generation X.

25 Jan 2012

Voluntary action by two research teams to halt work on H5N1 lauded

A Georgetown University Medical Center professor says the voluntary action taken by two research teams to temporarily halt work involving the highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 is "laudable."

24 Jan 2012

Settling controversy surrounding bird flu research will not be easy

The WHO is expected to hold a meeting in February to discuss controversy over recent research on the H5N1 bird flu virus, after the U.S. National Scientific Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB) in December advised the journals Science and Nature to withhold publishing two teams' research on the virus for fear the information could "fall into the wrong hands," a commentary in the Economist's "Babbage" blog states.

24 Jan 2012

Scientists halt bird flu research for 60 days amid safety concerns

The head of the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which funded "two projects that created a highly pathogenic [H5N1] flu virus mutation, has welcomed a two-month moratorium on further research while defending the value and safety of the experiments," the Financial Times reports.

24 Jan 2012

Duke team creates vaccine adjuvant of nanoparticles that target lymph nodes

Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have created synthetic nanoparticles that target lymph nodes and greatly boost vaccine responses, said lead author Ashley St. John, Ph.D., a researcher at Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School.

23 Jan 2012

Debate over publication of bird flu studies continues in journal opinion pieces

Ron Fouchier of Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands -- lead researcher of one of two teams that last year reported study results "that showed how the H5N1 [bird flu] virus can be transmitted through airborne droplets between ferrets, a model for studying influenza in humans."

21 Jan 2012

About half of eligible and due services are missed during PHEs

More than 20 percent of U.S. adults receive periodic health examinations (PHE) each year, yet new research shows that patients who have an annual routine visit to their doctor may not receive recommended preventive screening tests and counseling services that could benefit their health.

20 Jan 2012

Georgetown professors explore balance of national security and scientific freedom

The U.S. government's request that the journals Science and Nature withhold scientific information related to the genetically modified H5N1 virus because of biosecurity concerns does not violate the First Amendment, say two Georgetown University professors. They caution, however, that a fair, transparent process undertaken by research organizations is preferable to governmental constraints on disseminating scientific information.

19 Jan 2012