Influenza News and Research

Latest Influenza News and Research

Study reveals BCG vaccine's unexpected role in fighting influenza

As Canada's flu season collides with record strep A cases and ongoing COVID-19 concerns, a new study is shedding light on our understanding of respiratory immune responses.

26 Feb 2024

Healthcare leaders advocate for restoring Canada's hypertension control program

A passionate plea for the re-establishment of Canada's health coalition focused on hypertension prevention and control appears as an editorial in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology, published by Elsevier.

26 Feb 2024

Researchers develop promising recombinant flu vaccine using nanoliposome technology

Recombinant protein vaccines, like the Novavax vaccine used to fight COVID-19, offer several advantages over conventional vaccines.

24 Feb 2024

Global health boost as new vaccine SKYTyphoid gains WHO prequalification

SK bioscience and the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) announced today that the typhoid conjugate vaccine developed by SK bioscience with technology transfer from IVI has achieved the World Health Organization prequalification (PQ), which paves the way for public procurement of the vaccine by UN organizations and gives a boost to the global TCV supply.

23 Feb 2024

October found to be the optimum time to vaccinate against influenza

The optimum time to vaccinate young infants against influenza.

22 Feb 2024

October births linked to higher flu vaccination and lower diagnosis rates

Children born in October are both more likely to be vaccinated against influenza and least likely to be diagnosed with influenza compared with children born in other months, finds a US study published by The BMJ today.

21 Feb 2024

CDC studies show effectiveness of flu vaccines across all age groups

The prospect of the worrisome triple threat of COVID, RSV and flu was assuaged last year by the effectiveness of flu vaccines.

19 Feb 2024

Virginia Tech receives grant for improving rural wastewater pathogen detection

Testing wastewater to assess the spread of the COVID-19 virus became common and well-publicized during the pandemic, but it has been focused mostly on urban areas.

16 Feb 2024

Rising mammal infections signal alarm for potential H5N1 pandemic

Comprehensive review highlights the increasing trend of mammal-to-mammal transmissions of H5N1 avian influenza, emphasizing the need for vigilant surveillance to prevent a potential pandemic.

14 Feb 2024

Fluid-filled lung sac found to be the hub for virus-eating cells

Scientists have long thought of the fluid-filled sac around our lungs merely as a cushion from external damage. Turns out, it also houses potent virus-eating cells that rush into the lungs during flu infections.

14 Feb 2024

New study finds 4’-fluorouridine effective against avian influenza in vitro and in vivo

A PLOS Pathogens study reveals 4’-fluorouridine effectively combats avian influenza in vitro and in animal models, showing promise as a treatment that overcomes resistance and reduces disease severity without significant adverse effects.

11 Feb 2024

Vaccines safe for pregnant women with HIV but show reduced immune response

A meta-analysis in eClinicalMedicine finds vaccines are safe for pregnant women living with HIV, showing reduced immunogenicity compared to those without HIV but no increase in adverse events, highlighting the need for their inclusion in vaccine trials.

9 Feb 2024

COVID-19 linked to higher dementia risk in older adults, study finds

Research indicates a potential link between COVID-19 and an increased risk of new-onset dementia in adults over 60, with the risk being similar to that from other respiratory infections.

9 Feb 2024

Immune cells in overdrive: Study finds unbalanced response worsens lung infections

CD4+ T cells have been highlighted in the scientific literature for the important role they play in the immune response to lung infections.

8 Feb 2024

Media stories on parental vaccine hesitancy drive a false narrative, distort reality

Media stories focusing on vaccine hesitancy can distort reality and drive a false narrative that a large percentage of parents are refusing to get their children vaccinated, according to an editorial in the New England Journal of Medicine by two pediatricians from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

6 Feb 2024

HPV infection quadruples risk of death from heart disease in women

Women have a four times higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease if they have an infection with a high-risk strain of the human papillomavirus (HPV), according to research published in the European Heart Journal today (Wednesday).

6 Feb 2024

Promising influenza drug candidate shows activity against resistant variants

Influenza A viruses with induced resistance to a new candidate antiviral drug were found to be impaired in cell culture and weakened in animals, according to a study by researchers in the Center for Translational Antiviral Research at Georgia State University.

6 Feb 2024