H1N1 Pandemic Flu Virus More Virulent Than Previously Thought

Researchers from the US and Japan studying the new H1N1 pandemic flu virus suggest that it is more virulent than previously thought. They found the virus seizes hold in cells deep inside the lungs, leading to pneumonia and in more severe cases, death, whereas seasonal flu viruses only infect cells in the upper respiratory tract.

University of Wisconsin-Madison virologist and leading authority on influenza, Dr Yoshihiro Kawaoka led the international team of researchers in a detailed investigation of the pandemic H1N1 virus and its pathogenic properties and wrote about their findings in a fast-track report published online on 13 July in the journal Nature.

The researchers wrote that the spread of the new strain of influenza A virus that the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic on 11 June is probably due to the fact there are many humans with little or no pre-existing immunity.

Kawaoka, a professor of pathobiological sciences at the UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine and a professor at the University of Tokyo, said this virus was misunderstood in that many people were under the impression it was like seasonal influenza, but this study shows that is not the case:

"There is clear evidence the virus is different than seasonal influenza," said Kawaoka.

The ability to infect deep inside the lungs is similar to that of other pandemic viruses, including the 1918 strain that killed tens of millions of people around the world, said the researchers.

It also bears other similarities to the 1918 strain in that people born before 1918 have antibodies that protect against today's pandemic strain.

Kawaoka said it is also possible that the virus could evolve new properties.

For the study, the researchers infected mice, ferrets and non-human primates with pandemic H1N1 and seasonal flu from samples obtained from human patients in California, Wisconsin, the Netherlands and Japan.

They found that the pandemic flu strain replicated much more efficiently in the respiratory system than the seasonal flu. It also caused severe lesions in the lungs, closely resembling the damage caused by other pandemic strains.

Kawaoke said:

"The H1N1 virus replicates significantly better in the lungs."

Also, using specific-pathogen-free miniature pigs, the researchers found that the virus spread in pigs without showing any clinical symptoms.

The team were also able to assess the immune response of different people to the new virus. They found that those who had been exposed to the 1918 strain (all now in advanced old age) had antibodies that neutralized the novel pandemic H1N1 virus.

"The people who have high antibody titers are the people born before 1918," said Kawaoke.

But, although the discovery that the new H1N1 strain is potentially more dangerous than previously reported is a matter for concern, Kawaoke said the good thing was that it does respond to existing and experimental antivirals and these provide a potentially effective first line of defence against the virus.

From a public health point of view, a first line of defence is important because it slows down the spread of a virus for a few months while a vaccine is being mass produced.

There are three approved antivirals on the market and the team tested two of them and also two experimental ones that are not yet approved. They tested the drugs on mice and found that:

"The existing and experimental drugs work well in animal models, suggesting they will work in humans," said Kawaoka.

The research was sponsored by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

swimming galore

house swimming w the kids..
for bonding purposes..

megalaboy:)

been to mega for two consecutive days for no reason at all,haha.. nah! we bought some stuff like cp,clothes and toys....

ate at mcdo,jollibee and bought krispy kreme for pasalubong.

a day w my angels...

we used to visit the mall thrice or even more than that whenever we feel like going--- GO is the word.never been a browned off for us...LOL!

How will the April Fools' computer worm affect you?--Conficker.c virus

(CNN) -- Remember the dire predictions surrounding the "millennium bug?" The doom-and-gloom scenarios bandied about by security analysts on how computers could act when their clocks turned to January 1, 2000?

Well, researchers are hoping that a potential April Fools' time bomb -- the Conficker.c that is supposed to hit computers on April 1 -- turns out to be equally unfounded.

But realizing that hope alone is not a prudent option, here is a primer on the worm so you can adequately prepare yourself -- and your computer.

What is Conficker.c and what do analysts fear it may do?

Conficker.c is a worm, a malicious program thought to have already infected between 5 million and 10 million computers.

Those infections haven't spawned many symptoms, but on April 1 a master computer is scheduled to gain control of these zombie machines, said Don DeBolt, director of threat research for CA, a New York-based IT and software company.

What happens on April Fools' Day is anyone's guess.

The program could delete all of the files on a person's computer, use zombie PCs -- those controlled by a master -- to overwhelm and shut down Web sites or monitor a person's keyboard strokes to collect private information like passwords or bank account information, experts said.

Experts said computer hackers largely have moved away from showboating and causing random trouble. They now usually try to make money off their viral programs.

How does the Conficker.c work?

The program's code is also written to evolve over time and its author appears to be making updates to thwart attempts to neuter the worm.

Who wrote the program?

It's unclear who wrote the program, but anti-work researchers -- a group calling itself the Conficker Cabal -- are looking for clues.

First, they know that some recent programs have come from Eastern European countries outside the jurisdiction of the European Union, said Patrick Morganelli, senior vice president of technology for Enigma Software.

Worm program authors often hide in those countries to stay out of sight from law enforcement, he said.

In a way, the Conficker Cabal is also looking for the program author's fingerprints. DeBolt said security researchers are looking through old programs to see if their programming styles are similar to that of Conficker C.

The prospects for catching the program's author are not good, Morganelli said. "Unless they open their mouth, they'll never be found," he said.

So, the most effective counter-assault simply may be damage control.

How can I tell if my computer's infected?

One quick way to see if your computer has been infected is to see if you have gotten automatic updates from Windows in March. If so, your computer likely is fine, DeBolt said.

Microsoft released a statement saying the company "is actively working with the industry to mitigate the spread of the worm."

Users who haven't gotten the latest Windows updates should go to http://safety.live.com if they fear they're infected, the company's statement says.

People who use other antivirus software should check to make sure they've received the latest updates, which also could have been disabled by Conficker.c.

How did the worm evolve?

The first version of Conficker -- strain A -- was released in late 2008. That version used 250 Web addresses -- generated daily by the system -- as the means of communication between the master computer and its zombies.

The end goal of the first line was to sell computer users fake antivirus software, said Morganelli.

Computer security experts largely patched that problem by working with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers to disable or buy the problematic URLs, he said.

A second variant, Conficker.b, was released in January and infected millions more machines.

The Conficker, strain C, will generate 50,000 URLs per day instead of just 250 when it becomes active, DeBolt said.

Members are searching for the malicious software program's author and for ways to do damage control if he or she can't be stopped.

They're motivated in part by a $250,000 bounty from Microsoft.