Here is an update on the global swine flu situation as of 28 April 2009. There are now 64 laboratory confirmed cases of infection with the H1N1 swine influenza strain, up from 40 the day before. States reporting cases are California (10), Kansas, (2), New York City (45), Ohio (1) and Texas (6). These are …
A novel strain of H1N1 swine influenza virus has now also been isolated from cases of respiratory disease in Mexico City, New York City, and two locations in Canada. Clearly I was wrong in hypothesizing that the five mild cases in Texas and California reported last week were not a cause for alarm. In Mexico …
A new strain of swine influenza virus has been recently isolated from seven persons in the US. Is it time to break out the swine flu vaccine of 1976? Last week the CDC reported that swine influenza virus had been isolated from two children with respiratory illness in California. The cases were not linked and …
On episode #28 of the podcast “This Week in Virology”, Vincent, Dick, Alan, and Eric F. Donaldson discuss a new test for influenza H5N1, poliovirus in Minnesota, Koala retrovirus, batteries made from viruses, and SARS. Click the arrow above to play, or right-click to download TWiV #28 or subscribe in iTunes or by email.
Last week the US Food and Drug Administration approved a rapid test for determining whether a person is infected with an H5N1 subtype of influenza virus. Why is it better than previously available influenza diagnostic assays? The format of the new assay, according to its developer, ArborVita, “is the familiar lateral-flow rapid antigen assay”. This …
I joined host Dr. Marc Pelletier on the TWiT podcast ‘Futures in Biotech’ to interview influenza virologist Dr. Peter Palese, professor and chair of microbiology at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. We talk about influenza and why Dr. Palese revived a virus that killed 50 million people. Download Futures in Biotech 40: Virus Reborn …
