For week 48 in the United States (25 November – 1 December), influenza activity increased. Of 5,511 specimens submitted, 1,139 (20.7%) were positive for influenza. Of these, 854 (75%) were influenza A and 285 (25%) were influenza B. Of the influenza A virus positive specimens, 4 were H1N1 (2009) and 406 contained the H3 HA. The …
December 2-8 is National Influenza Vaccination Week. It was established in 2005 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to highlight the importance of continuing immunization throughout the holiday season. This year the push to immunize against flu comes as the disease has begun to increase substantially throughout the United States, as shown in the …
On episode #209 of the science show This Week in Virology, Vincent, Dickson, Alan, and Kathy answer listener email about deformed wing virus, West Nile virus, FluMist, influenza in Canada, viruses and the tree of life, and more. You can find TWiV #209 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
On episode #192 of the science show This Week in Virology, Vincent, Alan, and Rich answer listener email about bioinformatics, insects, influenza, laboratory classes, commensalism, reproducibility of data, and more. You can find TWiV #192 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
I still wonder why the influenza virus H5N1 ferret transmission studies generated such fear and misunderstanding among the public, the press, and even some scientists. I still cannot fully explain what transpired, but now that the papers have been published some new clues have emerged. In my opinion, the main catalyst of the storm was …
On episode #190 of the science show This Week in Virology, Vincent, Alan, and Kathy review selection of influenza H5N1 viruses that can transmit among ferrets by aerosol. You can find TWiV #190 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
