Influenza News and Research

Latest Influenza News and Research

New method to detect fake Tamiflu

Chemists in Georgia are reporting development of a fast new method to detect fake Tamiflu, the mainstay medication for preventing and treating bird flu.

8 Apr 2008

Molecular evolution of influenza A viruses circulated in Fujian Province, China

Fujian Center for Disease Control & Prevention, China, reported the molecular evolution of influenza A (H3N2) viruses in Fujian Province, south of China during the period 1996 to 2004 and demonstrated some key codons responsible for antigenic drift.

2 Apr 2008

Health survey reveals interesting facts about NSW residents

A population survey by the NSW Department of Health has revealed a number of interesting facts.

1 Apr 2008

Americans living longer, enjoying greater health and prosperity, but important disparities remain

Average life expectancy continues to increase, and today's older Americans enjoy better health and financial security than any previous generation.

31 Mar 2008

Ebola virus vaccines for humans

One of the world's deadliest diseases, caused by the Ebola virus, may finally be preventable thanks to US and Canadian researchers, who have successfully tested several Ebola vaccines in primates and are now looking to adapt them for human use.

31 Mar 2008

Another bird flu case in Indonesia - expert says surveillance and strict control measures are the answer

Indonesian health authorities have announced another case of bird flu, bringing the country's total confirmed cases to 130 to date with 105 deaths.

31 Mar 2008

Wistar Institute shares cell lines

Cell lines developed by scientists at The Wistar Institute in Philadelphia have recently been made available to researchers around the globe through the catalog collection at the Coriell Institute for Medical Research of Camden, N.J.

26 Mar 2008

WHO warns Aussies to prepare for deadly flu

The World Health Organisation (WHO) is warning Australians to prepare for a potentially deadly flu season.

23 Mar 2008

Skin patch gives bird flu vaccine a big boost

Researchers testing an experimental skin patch designed to boost an H5N1 vaccine say preliminary results have been promising.

21 Mar 2008

Community-acquired staph pneumonia appears more common, including MRSA

Preliminary research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests that community acquired pneumonia (CAP) caused by the Staphylococcus aureus bacterium may be more common than originally suspected, including that caused by antibiotic resistant strains.

20 Mar 2008

UN gives stark warning about bird flu threat from Indonesia

Any danger that the world has become bored or complacent regarding the threat of bird flu will be dispelled by a stark warning from the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

19 Mar 2008

Hong Kong on alert for both flu and bird flu

Hong Kong has suspended live poultry imports from the mainland following another outbreak of bird flu in the neighbouring region of Guangdong.

17 Mar 2008

Study confirms link between colds and ear infections

A new five-year study at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston confirms the suspected close link between the two most common diseases of young children: colds and ear infections.

14 Mar 2008

Killer flu in Hong Kong not bird flu

The deaths of three children in Hong Kong from a virulent form of influenza has forced health officials to close all of the district's elementary schools.

13 Mar 2008

A simulated pandemic influenza outbreak in Chicago

By using computer simulations and modeling, an international group of researchers including scientists from the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) at Virginia Tech's Network Dynamics and Simulation Science Laboratory (NDSSL) have determined how a pandemic influenza outbreak might travel through a city similar in size to Chicago, Ill.

11 Mar 2008

Another bird flu case in Egypt...

Health authorities in Egypt announced last week that another child has been hospitalized with the H5N1 avian virus, the country's second case in a child in less than a week.

11 Mar 2008

Japanese find way to make flu vaccine effective for multiple strains

Japanese scientists say they are well on the way to developing influenza vaccines which are effective for multiple strains of the disease, including strains of the bird flu virus.

11 Mar 2008

Pandemic influenza could be mitigated if measures were implemented quickly

An outbreak of pandemic influenza in the U.S. could be mitigated with prompt implementation of social-distancing measures combined with antiviral treatment and prophylaxis until a vaccine is available, according to new findings published in the online Early Edition of PNAS.

10 Mar 2008

Another wild bird in Hong Kong tests positive for H5N1

Authorities in Hong Kong say a wild oriental magpie robin found dead ten days ago has tested positive for the deadly H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus.

9 Mar 2008

Research helps explain why some flu strains cause major pandemics and others lead to seasonal epidemics

The exchange of genetic material between two closely related strains of the influenza A virus may have caused the 1947 and 1951 human flu epidemics, according to biologists.

6 Mar 2008