Influenza

Every winter influenza A and B viruses cause significant problems in communities throughout the world. Mortality rates can be high, even in countries like the UK, where vaccines are distributed to ‘at risk’ groups. As a result new antivirals have been developed to aid in clinical management.

A further problem is the huge global pandemic of influenza in 1918, 1957 and 1968 and the potential for this to happen again.

A range of influenza A and B viruses are held in the Retroscreen Virology laboratories, including classic strains and recent isolates. The viruses are cultivated in MDCK cells or embryonated hens eggs. Antivirals are screened using cell cultures and virus replication is quantified by haemagglutination or virus induced changes in the cells. Classic serological tests including HI, SRH and ELISA are performed regularly.

Publications

Oxford, J.S., Bossuyt, S., Balasingam, S., Mann., A., Novelli, P., Lambkin, R. (2003). Treatment of epidemic and pandemic influenza with neuraminidase and M2 proton channel inhibitors. Clin Microbiol; 9:1-14.

Reid, A.H., Janczewski, T.A., Lourens, R.M., Elliot, A.J., Daniels, R.S., Berry, C.L., Oxford, J.S. and Taubenberger, J.K. (2003). Influenza pandemic caused by highly conserved viruses with two receptor-binding variants. Emerg Infect Dis; 9:1249-53.

Oxford, J.S., Al-Jabri, A.A., Lambkin, R., Palache, A.M. and Fleming, D.M. (2003). Non-responders to egg grown influenza vaccine seroconvert after booster immunization with MDCK cell grown vaccine. Vaccine; 21:2743-46.

Lo, K.C., Geddes, J.F., Daniels, R.S. and Oxford, J.S. (2003). Lack of detection of influenza genes in archived formalin-fixed, paraffin wax-embedded brain samples of encephalitis lethargica patients from 1916-1920. Virchows Arch; 442:591-96.

Oxford, J.S., Bossuyt, S., Balasingham, S., Mann, A., Novelli, P. and Lambkin, R. (2003). Treatment of epidemic and pandemic influenza with neuraminidase and M2 proton channel inhibitors. Clin Microbiol Infect; 9: 1-14.

Oxford, J.S., Bossuyt, S. Kelly, L. Lambkin, R. (2002) Drugs to combat the epidemic and pandemic paces of influenza. Textbook of Influenza. Ed. C.W. Potter Elsevier, 3p.201-234.

Gelder, C.M., Lambkin, R., Hart, K.W., Fleming, D., Martin, O.M., Gaughran, F., Buncer, M., Welsh, K.I., Marshall, S.E., and Oxford, J (2002). Associations between Human Leukocyte Antigens and Nonresponsiveness to Influenza Vaccine. Journal of Infectious Diseases, 185, 114-117.

Oxford, J.S. (2002). The so-called Great Spanish Influenza Pandemic of 1918 may have originated in France in 1916. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci; 356: 1857-59.

Carr, J., Ives, J., Lambkin, R., Oxford, J., Mendel, D., Roberts, N. (2002). Influenza virus carrying neuraminidase with reduced sensitivity to oseltamivir.. Carboxylate is compromised for infectivity and replicative ability in vivo. Antiviral Research; 54:79-88.

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