Latest Influenza pandemic Stories

LONDON, Aug. 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The possible combination of influenza strains H1N1 (high infectivity) and H5N1 (high lethality) is a matter of global concern (1, 2). Bioradar UK Ltd announced today (3) first, that the Replikin Counts of the two virus strains have risen simultaneously, not seen previously. Additionally, the rise is to their highest levels in 50 years (H1N1, 16.7; H5N1, 23.3), and that clinical outbreaks of each strain are now occurring. These simultaneous conditions...

LONDON, Aug. 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The possible combination of influenza strains H1N1 (high infectivity) and H5N1 (high lethality) is a matter of global concern (1, 2). Bioradar UK Ltd announced today (3) first, that the Replikin Counts of the two virus strains have risen simultaneously, not seen previously. Additionally, the rise is to their highest levels in 50 years (H1N1, 16.7; H5N1, 23.3), and that clinical outbreaks of each strain are now occurring. These simultaneous conditions...

Outbreak could quickly exhaust capacity A new study of children's hospitals nationwide has found them underequipped to handle a major surge of patients in the event of a pandemic, and urges health care institutions and government agencies to immediately review emergency preparedness plans as flu season approaches. "Every year we get lucky," said the study's lead author, Marion Sills, MD, MPH, and associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. "But it...

-Prestigious recognition for Medicago's VLP vaccine technology platform- QUEBEC CITY, Aug. 23, 2011 /PRNewswire/ - Medicago Inc. (TSX: MDG), a biotechnology company focused on developing highly effective and competitive vaccines based on proprietary manufacturing technologies and Virus-Like Particles (VLPs), today announced it has won the 2011 Frost & Sullivan Enabling Technology of the Year award in the vaccine market. This award recognizes Medicago's achievements and...

Health experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , for the second year in a row, are urging all Americans to get their influenza shot, even though the circulating strains of flu have not changed since last year's flu season. The CDC said on Thursday that its recommendation applies to everyone over 6 months of age. They said that even those who received flu shots last year against the same flu strains need to have it again. The agency said it is very possible that...

TAU researchers work to determine how H1N1 becomes pandemicThe last century has seen two major pandemics caused by the H1N1 virus "” the Spanish Flu in 1918 and 2009's Swine Flu scare, which had thousands travelling with surgical masks and clamoring for vaccination. But scientists did not know what distinguished the Swine Flu from ordinary influenza in pigs or seasonal outbreaks in humans, giving it the power to travel extensively and infect large populations.Until now. Prof. Nir Ben-Tal of...

BEIJING, Aug. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Sinovac Biotech Ltd. (NASDAQ: SVA), a leading provider of biopharmaceutical products in China, announced today its unaudited second quarter financial results for the period ended June 30, 2011. Second Quarter 2011 Financial Highlights Sales increased 52.5% year-over-year to $15.7 million, compared to $10.3 million.Net income attributable to shareholder reached $1.32 million and EPS was $0.02 per share. Cash and cash equivalents and short-term...

Scientists have found a flu "super antibody" they say may be a turning point in the development of new flu treatments. The researchers say the "super antibody" called FI6 can fight all types of influenza A viruses that cause disease. The team used a new method aimed at beating "needle-in-a-haystack-type-odds" and managed to identify an antibody from a human patient that neutralizes both main groups of influenza A viruses. They said that although it is an early...

(Ivanhoe Newswire)--Social media is changing the way people are communicating about health. New social media outlets such as "speak-to-tweet" are being used to improve communication about health and safety. This particular social network facilitated communication following the 2011 Egyptian uprising which had also been organized by means of social networking. Following Haiti's earthquake in 2010, an open-source web platform was used to provide information to support crisis management, linking...

The United Nations' World Health Organization said on Thursday that worldwide production of seasonal flu vaccine is expected to double to 1.7 billion doses by 2015, with eleven new manufacturers ramping up in developing nations, Reuters reports.Furthermore, in the event of a new influenza pandemic, a projected 37 vaccine makers could potentially triple their annual production of trivalent seasonal vaccine to produce some 5.4 billion doses, the U.N. agency said.However, experts say the actual...