Nature Reports Avian Flu

Under the tongue

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 07:09:23 -0500

Scientists have discovered a new needle-free way of vaccinating against flu – under the tongue! This is not only good news for needle-phobics but has wider implications for preparations against the impending pandemic. Needle immunisations require skilled professionals whereas a drop of vaccine placed under the tongue could potentially be performed by anyone.

Is it better to go Live?

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 07:06:46 -0500

Live virus vaccines better mimic the natural course of infection and so generate superior immunity to killed or inactivated virus. Yet uptake of the Live-attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) has been low, due to fears over the safety of the vaccine and the ability of the attenuated virus to transmit from person-to-person.

Now a review from the Mayo Clinic hopes to dispel these myths and promote wider acceptance of the vaccine. If more people were given LAIV over the inactivated virus it would give greater protection within the community, generating so-called ‘herd immunity’. With that in mind – would you go live?

Should I stay or should I go?

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 06:59:55 -0500

Pandemic influenza is not just a threat to global health - it will undoubtedly have a huge economic impact that could also affect governance and security, according to David Nabarro, UN System Senior Coordinator for Avian and Human Influenza, speaking earlier this month at the London School of Economics.

People missing work to avoid infection will pose the biggest problem – causing reduced productivity and trade. And it’s easy to see how problems will quickly escalate with a diminished police force and reduced national security!

So we should stay at work – and increase the risk of viral transmission? It’s a mixed message...

The answer lies in effective communication – it is imperative that accurate advice and information is disseminated quickly throughout the community, and that the media avoid ‘scare-mongering’. A key element of pandemic preparedness relies on ensuring that channels of communication are in place and ready to respond quickly.

Would you listen to those messages and stay at work? I’m not sure....

Listen to the Podcast of this lecture here.

Should family members of avian flu victims be allowed to travel?

Tue, 18 Dec 2007 09:29:13 -0500

A WHO team have been sent to Pakistan to investigate the potential human-human transmission of H5N1. A cluster of 8 cases started in mid-November following a culling operation to control poultry outbreaks, but was only reported to the WHO on December 15.

In the interim, a man returned to his home in New York after attending the funeral of family members confirmed to be part of the cluster. Although he quarantined himself and subsequently tested negative for H5N1 – should he have been allowed to travel?

I want them alive!

Wed, 05 Dec 2007 11:20:44 -0500

That is the call from Walter Boyce, the co-director of the NIH Center for Rapid Influenza Surveillance and Research, in his Nature Commentary about the global surveillance of avian flu infections.

"..dead birds do not tell us about the birds that don’t get sick when infected – those that could spread H5N1 over longer distances"

He highlights three steps to improve the current approach to tracking avian flu infections:

1.Greater sharing of data and virus samples.
2.Greater surveillance of wild birds, particularly in endemic regions.
3.Better characterisation and diagnoses of all virus sub-types - remembering that H5N1 is not the only strain that poses a pandemic threat…

In light of the continuing stand-off with Indonesia, how realistic are these suggestions?

The Commentary is currently available free here.

Indonesia – defender of intellectual property rights, or obstacle to progress against avian flu?

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 12:17:57 -0500

Is Indonesia right to withhold samples of the H5N1 virus? Talks held by the WHO in Geneva last week failed to reach an agreement. Monitoring viral samples is essential for tracking mutations in the deadly H5N1 strain and represents our best hope for developing vaccines against a potential pandemic. However, Indonesia has withheld viral samples since August 2007 amidst fears that they would not be able to afford vaccines developed by pharmaceutical companies.

As part of an “equitable sharing of benefits”, Indonesia is now demanding a ‘materials transfer agreement’ for each virus sample sent to foreign labs, specifying that the sample is for diagnostic use only and should not be used for commercial gain (Reuters).

Read more from the Nature News blog.The Great Beyond

Animal models prove relevant to research

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 12:16:06 -0500

A new report offers insight into the value of animal models in medical research: The MF59 adjuvant has been safely used in a licensed influenza vaccine (Fluad) for over 10 years, in more than 30 million patients. Now, retrospective analysis of preclinical animal studies indicates that in fact the mouse was a fairly accurate predictor of performance in humans.

Read the full story here

Do flu vaccines work for the elderly?

Mon, 22 Oct 2007 14:52:16 -0500

How effective are flu vaccines at preventing death in the elderly? A review suggests that there isn't actually much proof that these jabs prevent influenza-related deaths in older people, stirring up controversy over this issue once more. The debate could influence both how the elderly are treated against flu, and how vaccines are distributed to try to prevent epidemics.

See the full news story here

Biosafety risk in health lab move to central London

Mon, 22 Oct 2007 14:44:03 -0500

How much of a biosafety risk is the move of a major research institution into the centre of one of the world’s major capital cities? The plans for the UK’s Medical Research Centre sparks debate.

See the full Correspondence here

Pandemic potential

Fri, 21 Sep 2007 08:58:22 -0500

Does the isolation of an H5N1 virus from a fatal case of avian flu represent a strain that could more easily be transmitted from person to person?

See the summary in Nature Reviews Microbiology and the full story in Journal of Virology

Cheaper approaches to flu divide researchers

Fri, 21 Sep 2007 08:54:54 -0500

As governments race to stockpile Tamiflu and other antivirals in preparation for the next influenza pandemic, should they also invest in anti-inflammatory drugs as alternatives?

See the full story here

New uses for old drugs

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 12:42:58 -0500

Existing drugs represent a vast untapped pharmacological resource, with the potential for treating diseases other than those originally targeted. Can the research community get its act together to create a publicly accessible collection?

See the full story here

Clinical setbacks for toll-like receptor 9 agonists in cancer

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 12:40:44 -0500

With disappointing results in the clinic against cancer, are toll-like receptor agonists likely to be useful for protecting against viral diseases such as influenza?

See the full story here

How much avian flu vaccine does Africa need?

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 05:58:11 -0500

Togo is now among a select list of African countries that have received a total of 21 million doses of H5N1 vaccine from the OIE since May 2006. But is this enough to protect flocks at high risk of infection? Other countries receiving the vaccines are Egypt, Mali, Mauritania, Ghana, Senegal and Mauritius.

For the OIE press release see here

and our FAQ "Why can't bird flu be eradicated?"

Production technologies change flu vaccine landscape

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 05:55:54 -0500

Standfirst: Mamalian cell culture for the production of seasonal flu vaccine finally gains approval. Does this mark the end of a decades old tradition of using hens’ eggs?

See the full story here