Friday, May 8th, 2009

Influenza Research

This preliminary negative stained transmission electron micrograph (TEM) depicted some of the ultrastructural morphology of the A/CA/4/09 swine flu virus. CDC / C. S. Goldsmith and A. Balish

Why does the flu affect different people differently? Why do some people infected with the influenza virus have symptoms resembling an ordinary cold, while other people infected with the same virus may get very sick or even die? Writing in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology, a group of researchers say they now have a better understanding of some of the factors involved in the severity of influenza infections. In an infected person, they say, the virus can temporarily paralyze the immune system, making that person more vulnerable to other infections. We'll talk with one of the researchers about what they found.