Scientists have for the first time recovered RNA from an extinct species, the Tasmanian tiger, raising hope for the resurrection of animals once thought lost forever, Stockholm University researchers told AFP.
Paleontology & Fossils
Sep 26, 2023
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932
Disasters don't read border signs or follow speed limits. Solutions shouldn't, either.
Environment
Aug 30, 2022
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4
While some places remain mired in the third wave of the pandemic, others are taking their first tentative steps towards normality. Since April 21, Denmark has allowed indoor service at restaurants and cafes, and football ...
Social Sciences
Apr 30, 2021
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3
Scientists have spotted a once-in-a-century climate anomaly during World War I that likely increased mortality during the war and the influenza pandemic in the years that followed.
Environment
Sep 24, 2020
4
2708
Most people think or at least hope their government is doing a good job in the face of COVID-19, according to the polls. But there can be no doubt that governments around the world were ill-prepared for this pandemic.
Political science
Apr 28, 2020
0
10
Influenza is a deadly virus, with about 290,000 to 650,000 deaths worldwide each year. When pandemics hit, the toll can soar: The Spanish flu of 1918 caused 40 million to 50 million deaths, the Asian flu of 1957 caused 2 ...
Biochemistry
Feb 14, 2020
0
88
(Phys.org)—The 1918 outbreak of Spanish flu was so unlike other pandemics that it is analogous to a massive natural disaster. The H1N1 virus infected an estimated 500 million people and killed 100 million by some estimates. ...
An international research team has manufactured a new protein that can combat deadly flu epidemics.
Biotechnology
May 27, 2012
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0
A compound tested by UT Southwestern Medical Center investigators destroys several viruses, including the deadly Spanish flu that killed an estimated 30 million people in the worldwide pandemic of 1918.
Biochemistry
Sep 26, 2011
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0
Boston University researchers have developed a simple diagnostic tool that can quickly identify dangerous viruses like Ebola and Marburg. The biosensor, which is the size of a quarter and can detect viruses in a blood sample, ...
Bio & Medicine
Nov 22, 2010
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0
The 1918 flu pandemic (commonly referred to as the Spanish flu) was an influenza pandemic that spread to nearly every part of the world. It was caused by an unusually virulent and deadly influenza A virus strain of subtype H1N1. Historical and epidemiological data are inadequate to identify the geographic origin of the virus. Most of its victims were healthy young adults, in contrast to most influenza outbreaks which predominantly affect juvenile, elderly, or otherwise weakened patients. The flu pandemic has also been implicated in the sudden outbreak of encephalitis lethargica in the 1920s.
The pandemic lasted from March 1918 to June 1920, spreading even to the Arctic and remote Pacific islands. It is estimated that anywhere from 50 to 100 million people were killed worldwide, or the approximate equivalent of one third of the population of Europe. An estimated 500 million people, one third of the world's population (approximately 1.6 billion at the time), became infected.
Scientists have used tissue samples from frozen victims to reproduce the virus for study. Given the strain's extreme virulence there has been controversy regarding the wisdom of such research. Among the conclusions of this research is that the virus kills via a cytokine storm (overreaction of the body's immune system) which explains its unusually severe nature and the concentrated age profile of its victims. The strong immune systems of young adults ravaged the body, whereas the weaker immune systems of children and middle-aged adults caused fewer deaths.
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