PET PET
  • My Account
  • Subscribe
Become a Friend Donate
  • About Us
    • People
    • Press Office
    • Our History
  • Get Involved
    • Become a Friend of PET
    • Volunteer
    • Campaigns
    • Writing Scheme
    • Partnership and Sponsorship
    • Advertise with Us
  • Donate
    • Become a Friend of PET
  • BioNews
    • News
    • Comment
    • Reviews
    • Elsewhere
    • Topics
    • Glossary
    • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Previous Events
  • Engagement
    • Policy and Projects
      • Resources
    • Education
  • Jobs & Opportunities
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
    • People
    • Press Office
    • Our History
  • Get Involved
    • Become a Friend of PET
    • Volunteer
    • Campaigns
    • Writing Scheme
    • Partnership and Sponsorship
    • Advertise with Us
  • Donate
    • Become a Friend of PET
  • BioNews
    • News
    • Comment
    • Reviews
    • Elsewhere
    • Topics
    • Glossary
    • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Previous Events
  • Engagement
    • Policy and Projects
      • Resources
    • Education
  • Jobs & Opportunities
  • Contact Us
  • My Account
  • Subscribe
  • Privacy Statement
  • Advertising Policy
  • Thanks and Acknowledgements
PETBioNewsNewsGene variant may explain increased flu severity among Chinese

BioNews

Gene variant may explain increased flu severity among Chinese

Published 1 February 2013 posted in News and appears in BioNews 691

Author

Matthew Thomas

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.

A genetic variant frequently found in Chinese populations may explain why severe complications from swine flu are more common in China. The discovery may also have implications for other influenza virus strains and help scientists understand why flu outbreaks hit some populations harder than others....

A genetic variant frequently found in Chinese populations may explain why severe
complications from swine flu are more common in China. The discovery may also have implications for other influenza virus strains and help
scientists understand why flu outbreaks hit some populations harder than others.

The variant is an alternative form - an allele - of a key
immune system gene. Chinese and British researchers looked for the variant in 83
patients admitted to a Beijing hospital during the 2009 and 2010 swine flu
pandemic. The allele was found in 22 of the 32 patients who suffered severe
complications from the virus but only 13 of the 51 patients with comparatively
mild symptoms.

The scientists calculated that the variant
increases the risk of developing a serious illness by five to six times once a
person is already infected. The allele is found in around a quarter of Han
Chinese, the largest ethnic group in China. It is also common among Japanese
and Korean populations but found in only one in 3,000 caucasians.

'It doesn't mean you should panic if you have this gene
variant', said Professor
Sir Andrew McMichael
, director of the Weatherall Institute of Molecular
Medicine at the University of Oxford and one of the study's authors. 'Most people who
have it won't run into any trouble at all'.

Previous research has shown that the variant — called rs12252-C
— is associated with more severe disease for other kinds of flu. Although it doesn't make people more likely to catch the flu, it could help
explain why new strains of the virus often emerge first in Asia. Swine flu
swept around the world in 2009, infecting an estimated one in
five people
worldwide. Around 200,000 people died in the first year of the
outbreak alone.

The latest results may lend support to the idea that genetic screening should eventually be included in national flu plans in order to
better assess people at greatest risk of severe infection. Professor Peter
Openshaw
, director of the Centre for Respiratory Infection at Imperial
College London, who was not involved in the study, told
Associated Press
: ' Further work needs to be done to justify that, but
maybe in the future we would be able to say that if you're of a certain
ethnicity, you are more at risk and should be prioritised for vaccination or
antivirals'.

However, he added: 'It's possible we could one
day do a genetic test before treating someone with flu to see what the best
treatment would be'.

The study was published in Nature Communications.

Related Articles

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.
News
9 September 2016 • 2 minutes read

'Flu severity' gene identified

by Dr Charlotte Warren-Gash

A key gene that governs the severity of influenza infections has been identified...

PET BioNews
News
20 March 2015 • 2 minutes read

US scientists clash with Indian health officials over swine flu mutations

by Fiona Ibanichuka

A dispute has arisen between US scientists and Indian health officials over the virulence of the H1N1 swine flu virus...

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.
News
20 September 2013 • 3 minutes read

DNA sequencing gives insight into deadly MERS virus

by Lanay Tierney

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, a potentially lethal respiratory virus first identified last year in Saudi Arabia, may be transmitted by jumping repeatedly from animals to humans, DNA sequencing suggests...

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.
News
9 August 2013 • 3 minutes read

Scientists call for more mutant bird flu experiments

by Lanay Tierney

Two scientists behind a controversial H5N1 avian flu publication last year, which deliberately modified the virus to become more transmissible to humans, hope to perform similar experiments on a new flu strain...

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.
News
19 July 2013 • 2 minutes read

Gene test to tell viral from bacterial infections

by Dr Kimberley Bryon-Dodd

A test which looks at how active different genes are could help doctors determine whether a patient has a viral or bacterial infection...

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.
News
6 March 2013 • 2 minutes read

Controversial publication of bird flu studies reveal virus' potential

by Dr Greg Ball

Controversial research showing how the H5N1 'bird flu' virus can be altered to make it transmissible between mammals through the air has been published, nine months after it was first presented at a conference....

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.
News
20 February 2013 • 2 minutes read

Genetic flaw raises flu risk

by Dr Nadeem Shaikh

Differences in the severity of people's flu symptoms may be due to a genetic variant, according to scientists...

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.
News
27 April 2012 • 2 minutes read

MRSA superbug evades immune defences with a jumping gene

by Dr Vikki Burchell

A gene identified in MRSA may contribute to the spread and virulence of the superbug. The gene - sasX - is located in a segment of DNA called a mobile genetic element and is capable of jumping from one bacterium to another...

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.
News
26 August 2011 • 2 minutes read

Genetic link found to resistance to the flu

by Zara Mahmoud

Scientists have suggested there may be a genetic basis behind the way our body reacts to the flu virus, making some of us more vulnerable than others. A study published in PLoS Genetics has tracked the body's response to the H3N2/Wisconsin strain of the flu virus at the genetic level. The researchers injected the virus into 17 volunteers and analysed expression patterns from the time of injection to the onset of full-blown clinical symptoms...

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

« Canada: Fertility doctor suspended after sperm mix ups

Data-Label The UK's Leading Supplier Of Medical Labels & Asset Labels

RetiringDentist.co.uk The UK's Leading M&A Company.

Find out how you can advertise here
easyfundraising
amazon

This month in BioNews

  • Popular
  • Recent
8 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

Placenta and organ formation observed in mouse embryo models

8 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

Lower hormone doses may improve IVF egg quality

8 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

Boosting muscle cell production of gene therapy proteins

1 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

First UK medical guidelines issued for trans fertility preservation

1 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

Male age has more impact on IVF birth rate than previously thought

15 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

Call to end ban on HIV-positive partner gamete 'donation'

15 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

Melanoma invades new tissues using nerve cell gene

15 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

Exceeding alcohol limits could damage DNA and accelerate ageing

15 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

Blood cell gene mutations affect mitochondria, increasing cardiovascular disease risk

15 August 2022 • 2 minutes read

Jumping gene helps immune system fight viruses

Subscribe to BioNews and other PET updates for free.

Subscribe
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • RSS
Wellcome
Website redevelopment supported by Wellcome.

Website by Impact Media Impact Media

  • Privacy Statement
  • Advertising Policy
  • Thanks and Acknowledgements

© 1992 - 2022 Progress Educational Trust. All rights reserved.

Limited company registered in England and Wales no 07405980 • Registered charity no 1139856

Subscribe to BioNews and other PET updates for free.

Subscribe
PET PET

PET is an independent charity that improves choices for people affected by infertility and genetic conditions.

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • RSS
Wellcome
Website redevelopment supported by Wellcome.

Navigation

  • About Us
  • Get Involved
  • Donate
  • BioNews
  • Events
  • Engagement
  • Jobs & Opportunities
  • Contact Us

BioNews

  • News
  • Comment
  • Reviews
  • Elsewhere
  • Topics
  • Glossary
  • Newsletters

Other

  • My Account
  • Subscribe

Website by Impact Media Impact Media

  • Privacy Statement
  • Advertising Policy
  • Thanks and Acknowledgements

© 1992 - 2022 Progress Educational Trust. All rights reserved.

Limited company registered in England and Wales no 07405980 • Registered charity no 1139856