tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Influenza pandemics often occur due to gene mixing from different strains causing an especially virulent strain to appear. Scientists from the U.S., U.K., and Japan have shown that avian influenza viruses circulating the world right now contain all the same or very similar genes that make up the incredibly virulent and deadly human strain that caused the 1918 pandemic, killing 3-5% of the world?s population which at that time meant about 40 million deaths.
Animal influenzas including bird or avian flu are thought to be the reservoir for deadly human strains like one which caused the 1918 pandemic. Scientists have noted recently that the genes of the avian flu viruses are very similar to the 1918 strain. Professor Yoshihiro Kawaoka of the University of Wisconsin-Madison followed this hunch by generating a strain call ?1918-like? through combining genes from 8 current circulating avian flu virus strains.
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http://www.neomatica.com/2014/07/05...18-influenza-present-circulating-strains-now/
Animal influenzas including bird or avian flu are thought to be the reservoir for deadly human strains like one which caused the 1918 pandemic. Scientists have noted recently that the genes of the avian flu viruses are very similar to the 1918 strain. Professor Yoshihiro Kawaoka of the University of Wisconsin-Madison followed this hunch by generating a strain call ?1918-like? through combining genes from 8 current circulating avian flu virus strains.
...
http://www.neomatica.com/2014/07/05...18-influenza-present-circulating-strains-now/