H5N1 Work Will Probably Continue

After a high-level meeting this week, work on the avian influenza H5N1 virus will probably continue by people who are not NIH funded. This is in the wake of a global debate about the risks and benefits of such research and a voluntary moratorium on the experiments lasting nearly a year.

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Epidemiologists Trying to Track Down Novel Coronavirus

The new coronavirus, linked to different cases in the Qatar and Saudi Arabia, was named HCoV-EMC, short for human coronavirus and the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

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Synthesizing a Flu Vaccine Without the Virus

A new vaccine strategy, which uses synthetic messenger RNA (mRNA) instead of proteins purified from viruses, could make flu shots cheaper, safer, and easier to produce. German scientists have shown that they have been able to protect mice, ferrets, and pigs against influenza.

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Crystal Meth Could Reduce Susceptibility to the Common Flu

Researchers suggest that a small dose of methamphetamine, i.e. crystal meth, could reduce the replication of the human influenza virus.

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Central American Bats Harbor a New Subtype of Influenza

It’s been reported that fruit bats in Guatemala are hosting a new type of the influenza A virus, according to a new study published in the journal PNAS. The novel subtype has been designated H17 and has diverged from known influenza viruses long ago.

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H1N1 Influenza Virus

H1N1 Virus via wikipedia

When I follow current events, I like to read Wikipedia. Wikipedia’s pages are usually updated pretty quickly on current news. For now, people and countries are taking precautionary measures. But everyone is worried about the fall, when the global pandemic could reach phase 6.