influenza

Researcher taking shot at flu vaccine that's more effective, easier to make
02/07/2013 - 11:10

 In the midst of an unusually deadly flu season and armed with a vaccine that only offers partial protection, a Purdue University researcher is working on a flu vaccine that overcomes the need to predict which strains will hit each year and eliminates the common causes of vaccine shortages.

 

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Microfluidic Chip Demonstrates Rapid, Low-Cost, Point-of-Care Flu Detection
03/27/2012 - 11:16

The novel H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009 underscored weaknesses in methods widely used to diagnose the flu, from frequent false negatives to long wait times for results. Now a four-year, National Institutes of Health-funded study of 146 patients with flu-like symptoms spearheaded by Associate Professor Catherine Klapperich (BME, MSE) has validated a prototype rapid, low-cost, accurate, point-of-care device that promises a better standard of care.

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Researchers identify key peptides that could lead to a universal vaccine for influenza and would activate alternative mechanisms of the immune system
01/31/2012 - 09:36

Researchers at the University of Southampton, University of Oxford and Retroscreeen Virology Ltd have discovered a series of peptides, found on the internal structures of influenza viruses that could lead to the development of a universal vaccine for influenza, one that gives people immunity against all strains of the disease, including seasonal, avian, and swine flu.
 

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Study offers new information for flu fight
01/27/2012 - 14:31

Influenza virus can rapidly evolve from one form to another, complicating the effectiveness of vaccines and anti-viral drugs used to treat it. By first understanding the complex host cell pathways that the flu uses for replication, University of Georgia researchers are finding new strategies for therapies and vaccines, according to a study published in the January issue of the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

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Generation X: How young adults deal with influenza
01/24/2012 - 09:31

Only about one in five young adults in their late 30s received a flu shot during the 2009-2010 swine flu epidemic, according to a University of Michigan report that details the behavior and attitudes of Generation X.

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Continuing Uncertainties Surround Anti-Influenza Drug
01/18/2012 - 07:31

Incomplete availability of data has hampered a thorough assessment of the evidence for using the anti-influenza drug oseltamivir, a Cochrane Review has found. However, after piecing together information from over 16,000 pages of clinical trial data and documents used in the process of licensing oseltamivir (Tamiflu) by national authorities, a team of researchers has raised critical questions about how well the drug works and about its reported safety profile.

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