An international team of scientists has created a highly pathogenic laboratory hybrid of the H5N1 bird flu and human seasonal flu viruses by swapping just one gene, and propose that a similar genetic interaction could happen in nature between the current pandemic H1N1 swine flu and H5N1 avian flu strains, highlighting the importance of continued surveillance…

Genetic interactions between avian H5N1 influenza and human seasonal influenza viruses have the potential to create hybrid strains combining the virulence of bird flu with the pandemic ability of H1N1, according to a new study. In laboratory experiments in mice, a single gene segment from a human seasonal flu virus, H3N2, was able to convert the avian H5N1 virus into a highly pathogenic form. The findings are reported the week of Feb. 22 in the online early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences…

The specter of a drug-resistant form of the deadly H5N1 avian influenza is a nightmare to keep public health officials awake at night. Now, however, a study published this week (Dec. 21) in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) suggests that a new compound, one on the threshold of final testing in humans, may be more potent and safer for treating “bird flu” than the antiviral drug best known by the trade name Tamiflu…

Medicago Inc. (TSX-V: MDG) a biotechnology company focused on developing highly effective and affordable vaccines based on proprietary manufacturing technologies and Virus-Like Particles (VLPs), reported positive interim results from a Phase I human clinical trial with its H5N1 Avian Influenza vaccine candidate (”H5N1 vaccine”).

The detection of an H1N1 virus in turkeys in Chile raises concern that poultry farms elsewhere in the world could also become infected with the pandemic flu virus currently circulating in humans, FAO said today. Chilean authorities reported on 20 August that the pandemic H1N1/2009 virus was present in turkeys in two farms near the seaport of Valparaiso, Chile.

The detection of an H1N1 virus in turkeys in Chile raises concern that poultry farms elsewhere in the world could also become infected with the pandemic flu virus currently circulating in humans, FAO said today. Chilean authorities reported on 20 August that the pandemic H1N1/2009 virus was present in turkeys in two farms near the seaport of Valparaiso, Chile.

Current research suggests that viral polymerase may provide a new therapeutic target for host-adapted avian influenza. The related report by Gabriel et al, “Spread of Infection and Lymphocyte Depletion in Mice Depends on Polymerase of Influenza Virus” appears in the September 2009 issue of the American Journal of Pathology.

American Innovative Research (A.I.R.) cofounders, David Palmer and Judy Piscione, explain how the impact of the avian flu pandemic originally motivated their company’s researching a home option of an isolation and containment unit. A.I.R.

New data on the persistence of avian influenza viruses in the environment has allowed a team of University of Georgia researchers to create the first model that takes into account both direct and indirect transmission of the viruses among birds.

Bird flu virus remains infectious up to 600 days in municipal landfills Amid concerns about a pandemic of swine flu, researchers from Nebraska report for the first time that poultry carcasses infected with another threat - the “bird flu” virus - can remain infectious in municipal landfills for almost 2 years.