Year: 2003
Type: article
Abstract: Fifty years ago influenza A B and C viruses had al‑ ready been discovered and many of the features including hemagglutination virus neutralization virus replication in ferrets mice and eggs enzyme activity incomplete virus (Von Magnus phenomenon) P ―Q― Rv ariation genetics and reactivation antigenic variation and the swine influ‑ enza lifecycle had been documentated(Hoyle1968) .F owl plague virus of chickens was soon to be recognized as an influenza virus by Shaffer(1955) and interferon was soon to be described by Issacs and Lindenmann(1957) .V ac‑ cines for influenza in humans were still rather crude and were reactogenic in children. Original Antigenic Sin had been described by Francis(1953) .A ntigenic drift in influ‑ enza virus explained the continuous variation in serologi‑ cal reactivity but the occasional major changes that oc‑ curred with the emergence of new pandemic strains like Asian/H2N2/195 7o r Hon gK ong/H3N2/196 8w ere unexplained. In the past50years influenza virus has served as a su‑ perb model system for the study of the replication genet‑ ics immunology and structure of segmented RNA viruses. By necessity I will focus only on a limited number of areas including Original Antigenic Sin the ecology of influenza Av irusesand their global distribution in aquatic birds ge‑ netic drift and shift and the emergence and pathogenesis of influenza viruses in animal models. Recent studies using reverse genetics have established that the NS1gene of the A/Hong Kong/156/97(H5N1)influenza virus can counteract host cell cytokine activity and that pigs in‑ fected with constructs containing this gene were severely ill. The future is extremely exciting for influenza viruses can now really bemade to orderand the genomics of both the virus and the host are at hand. Influenza is a truly global problem and there is still a paucity of information on influenza genomics. Through continuing international col‑ laborations this information will be obtained and we will define both the viral and host factors that permit influenza viruses to transmit between species and may then be able to predict pandemic potential. During this process we must be cognizant that influenza has continuing potential to be a man made or natural bioterrorism agent and that new strategies to control influenza are urgently needed in‑ cluding stockpiling of antiviral drugs.
Source: Uirusu
DOI: 10.2222/jsv.53.51
Author: Robert G. Webster
Institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Language: English
Subfield: Epidemiology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W363548469