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What Three Decades Of Pandemic Threats Can Teach Us About The Future
Editor’s Note: This post reflects on a speech on pandemic preparedness Dr. Fauci gave on January 10, 2017 in Washington, DC, hosted by  The Center for Global Health Science and Security at Georgetown University Medical Center, the Harvard Global Health Institute, and Health Affairs. One of the most important challenges facing the new Administration is preparedness for the pandemic outbreak of an infectious disease. Infectious diseases will continue to pose a significant threat to public health and the economies of countries worldwide. The U.S. government will need to continue its investment to combat these diseases whe...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - February 9, 2017 Category: Health Management Authors: Anthony S. Fauci Tags: Featured Global Health Policy Ebola HIV/AIDS NIH pandemic preparedness Zika Source Type: blogs

TWiV 396: Influenza viruses with Peter Palese
Vincent speaks with Peter Palese about his illustrious career in virology, from early work on neuraminidases to universal influenza virus vaccines, on episode #396 of the science show This Week in Virology. You can find TWiV #396 at microbe.tv/twiv, or listen below. Click arrow to play Download TWiV 396 (54 MB .mp3, 74 min) Subscribe (free): iTunes, RSS, email
Source: virology blog - July 3, 2016 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: This Week in Virology aerosol transmission ferret Flu gain of function H5N1 influenza influenza virus neuraminidase relenza swine flu tamiflu universal vaccine viral viruses Source Type: blogs

TWiV 296: Influenza viruses with Peter Palese
Vincent speaks with Peter Palese about his illustrious career in virology, from early work on neuraminidases to universal influenza virus vaccines, on episode #396 of the science show This Week in Virology. You can find TWiV #396 at microbe.tv/twiv, or listen below. Click arrow to play Download TWiV 396 (54 MB .mp3, 74 min) Subscribe (free): iTunes, RSS, email
Source: virology blog - July 3, 2016 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: This Week in Virology aerosol transmission ferret Flu gain of function H5N1 influenza influenza virus neuraminidase relenza swine flu tamiflu universal vaccine viral viruses Source Type: blogs

Tamiflu For All? Evidence Of Morbidity In CDC’s Antiviral Guidelines
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has boiled down its public health campaign against influenza to a single slogan: “Take 3.” Vaccines, everyday preventive actions like handwashing, and influenza antivirals. Last year, because of a mismatch between the vaccine and circulating virus, the message was reduced to—essentially—“Take 1,” as the CDC emphatically promoted oseltamivir (Tamiflu) for treating disease. The agency has stated: “Antiviral flu medicines are underutilized. If you get them early, they could keep you out of the hospital and might even save your life.” The CDC is one ...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - March 31, 2016 Category: Health Management Authors: Peter Doshi, Kenneth Mandl and Florence Bourgeois Tags: Drugs and Medical Technology Featured Global Health Health Professionals Public Health Quality CDC clinical trials drug safety FDA influenza Physicians Prevention Research vaccines Source Type: blogs

Moving beyond metagenomics to find the next pandemic virus
I was asked to write a commentary for the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences to accompany an article entitled SARS-like WIV1-CoV poised for human emergence. I’d like to explain why I wrote it and why I spent the last five paragraphs railing against regulating gain-of-function experiments. Towards the end of 2014 the US government announced a pause of gain-of-function research involving research on influenza virus, SARS virus, and MERS virus that “may be reasonably anticipated to confer attributes to influenza, MERS, or SARS viruses such that the virus would have enhanced pathogenicity and/or tra...
Source: virology blog - March 14, 2016 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Basic virology Commentary Information aerosol transmission benefits coronavirus ferret gain of function H5N1 influenza MERS metagenomics moratorium pathogenicity pause risks SARS viral viruses Source Type: blogs

1977 H1N1 influenza virus is not relevant to the gain of function debate
Image credit The individuals who believe that certain types of gain-of-function experiments should not be done because they are too dangerous (including Lipsitch, Osterholm, Wain-Hobson,) cite the 1977 influenza virus H1N1 strain as an example of a laboratory accident that has led to a global epidemic. A new analysis shows that the reappearance of the 1997 H1N1 virus has little relevance to the gain-of-function debate. Human influenza viruses of the H3N2 subtype were circulating in May of 1977 when H1N1 viruses were identified in China and then Russia. These viruses spread globally and continue to circulate to this day. Th...
Source: virology blog - August 20, 2015 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Uncategorized 1977 H1N1 bioweapon ferret gain of function GOF influenza laboratory accident moratorium transmission vaccine trial viral virology virus Source Type: blogs

What we are not afraid to say about Ebola virus
In a recent New York Times OpEd entitled What We’re Afraid to Say About Ebola, Michael Osterholm wonders whether Ebola virus could go airborne: You can now get Ebola only through direct contact with bodily fluids. If certain mutations occurred, it would mean that just breathing would put one at risk of contracting Ebola. Infections could spread quickly to every part of the globe, as the H1N1 influenza virus did in 2009, after its birth in Mexico. Is there any truth to what Osterholm is saying? Let’s start with his discussion of Ebola virus mutation: But viruses like Ebola are notoriously sloppy in replicating, me...
Source: virology blog - September 19, 2014 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Basic virology Information aerosol transmission airborne transmission ebola virus evolution hemorrhagic fever Michael Osterholm mutation viral Source Type: blogs

The value of influenza aerosol transmission experiments
A Harvard epidemiologist has been on a crusade to curtail aerosol transmission experiments on avian influenza H5N1 virus because he believes that they are too dangerous and of little value. Recently he has taken his arguments to the Op-Ed pages of the New York Times. While Dr. Lipsitch is certainly entitled to his opinion, his arguments do not support his conclusions. In early 2013 Lipsitch was the subject of a piece in Harvard Magazine about avian influenza H5N1 virus entitled The Deadliest Virus.  I have previously criticized this article  in which Lipsitch calls for more stringent H5N1 policies. More recently Lipsi...
Source: virology blog - July 5, 2014 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Basic virology Commentary Information aerosol avian H5N1 ferret fouchier gain of function influenza kawaoka transmission viral virus Source Type: blogs

Reconstruction of 1918-like avian influenza virus stirs concern over gain of function experiments
The gain of function experiments in which avian influenza H5N1 virus was provided the ability to transmit by aerosol among ferrets were met with substantial outrage from both the press and even some scientists; scenarios of lethal viruses escaping from the laboratory and killing millions proliferated (see examples here and here). The recent publication of new influenza virus gain of function studies from the laboratories of Kawaoka and Perez have unleashed another barrage of criticism. What exactly was done and what does it mean? According to critics, virologists should not be entrusted to carry out gain of function studie...
Source: virology blog - June 20, 2014 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Basic virology Information 1918 pandemic aerosol transmission avian influenza ferret gain of function H5N1 viral virus Source Type: blogs

Unusual mortality pattern of 1918 influenza A virus
The 1918 influenza pandemic was particularly lethal, not only for the very young and the very old (as observed for typical influenza), but unexpectedly also for young adults, 20 to 40 years of age (pictured). It has been suggested that the increased lethality in young adults occurred because they lacked protective immunity that would be conferred by previous infection with a related virus. Reconstruction of the origins of the 1918 influenza virus provides support for this hypothesis. Analysis of influenza virus genome sequences using a host-specific molecular clock together with seroarchaeology (analysis of stored sera fo...
Source: virology blog - May 2, 2014 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Basic virology Information 1918 pandemic H1N1 H2N2 H3N8 HA influenza seroarchaeology vaccine viral virus Source Type: blogs

Changing influenza virus neuraminidase into a receptor binding protein
The hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) glycoproteins of the influenza virus particle serve distinct functions during infection. The HA binds sialic acid-containing cellular receptors and mediates fusion of the viral and cell membranes, while the NA removes sialic acids from glycoproteins. Apparently this division of labor is not absolute: influenza viruses have been identified with NA molecules that serve as receptor binding proteins. An influenza virus was created that could not bind sialic acid by introducing multiple mutations into the HA gene. This mutant virus was not expected to be infectious, but nevertheless...
Source: virology blog - November 21, 2013 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Basic virology Information evolution HA hemagglutinin influenza mutation NA neuraminidase receptor binding sialidase tamiflu viral virus Source Type: blogs

Pharmalot... Pharmalittle... Good Morning
Good morning, everyone, and welcome to another working week. We hope the weekend respite was relaxing and refreshing because, as you know, the drumbeat of meetings and deadlines has now returned. This was expected, of course. Just the same, the moment calls for a cup or more of stimulation. After all, the nerves could use a little fortification. So please join us. We like to think that we do not drink alone. Meanwhile, here are some tidbits, as always. Hope you have a grand day and drop us a line if you run across something fascinating... Ranbaxy Hopes To Sell Generics In Japan (BioSpectrum Asia) Princeton May Use Novartis...
Source: Pharmalot - November 18, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs

Dr James LeFanu writes
There is rather more than is immediately apparent in the recent grudging acknowledgement that the swine flu vaccine increased the risk of the serious sleeping disorder narcolepsy fourteen-fold – and that those affected (mainly children) are entitled to compensation.As many will recall, the threatened swine flu “pandemic” of 2009 proved something of a non-event, with only 10 per cent of the predicted number of cases and a miniscule mortality rate of 0.0005 per cent.This discrepancy between the dire warnings and what turned out to be among the mildest flu outbreaks of the past 100 years prompted an inquiry by...
Source: PharmaGossip - November 18, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: insider Source Type: blogs

NIH and Other Public Private Partnerships to Research Treatments for Multiple Diseases
Over the past few weeks, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has made a number of important announcements regarding collaborations with industry as well as the funding of several new research initiatives. Below is a summary of these stories. NIH Partners With Eli Lilly and Others on Rare Diseases FierceBiotechResearch reported that NIH selected four (4) new preclinical drug development studies to uncover new therapies for rare diseases. The projects will be funded through the Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Diseases (TRND) program under NIH's National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, NCATS, which ...
Source: Policy and Medicine - October 4, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Thomas Sullivan Source Type: blogs

Virologists plan influenza H7N9 gain of function experiments
A group of virologists lead by Yoshihiro Kawaoka and Ron Fouchier have sent a letter to Nature and Science outlining the experiments they propose to carry out with influenza H7N9 virus. Avian influenza H7N9 virus has caused over 130 human infections in China with 43 fatalities. The source of the virus is not known but is suspected to be wet market poultry. No human to human transmission have been detected, and the outbreak seems to be under control. According to the authors of the letter, the virus could re-emerge this winter, and therefore additional work is needed to assess the risk of human infection. The research that ...
Source: virology blog - August 7, 2013 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Basic virology Commentary Information aerosol transmission ferret fouchier gain of function GOF H5N1 h7n9 influenza kawaoka pandemic viral virus Source Type: blogs

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