A reader of the post "Severe cases of pandemic influenza" asked whether I could comment on an article in The Atlantic which questions the efficacy of the influenza vaccine in the elderly population. I passed the request on to Revere at Effect Measure who wrote an excellent and thoughtful response, ...

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dick Despommier, Alan Dove, Jason Rodriguez, and Rich Condit In episode 55 of the podcast "This Week in Virology", the largest TWiV panel ever assembled takes on XMRV and chronic fatigue syndrome, 2009 chemistry Nobel prizes for ribosome structure, finding new poxvirus vaccine candidates, a brouhaha over ...

Xenotropic murine leukemia virus-like virus (XMRV) was discovered in 2006 during a search for viral sequences in prostate cancer tissues. The results of a recent study revealed that the virus is present in 23% of prostate cancers from patients in the US. Understanding the role of XMRV in prostate cancers ...

The influenza A (H1N1) 2009 vaccine produced by GlaxoSmithKline has been approved by Canada Health. Here is some information on the vaccine to supplement what I've provided about the US counterparts. The Canadian vaccine, called Arepanrix H1N1, is supplied in two parts. One contains inactivated H1N1 influenza virus, and the ...

The World Health Organization recently convened a meeting of 100 clinicians, scientists, and public health professionals to discuss the clinical features of pandemic influenza. They concluded that the vast majority of infections with the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus were uncomplicated and are followed by full recovery within 7 days. However, ...