WEEK 12

Tutorial_03/01-P11 to 20-P11 Can we control viral infections?

Tutorial 1 hour
Syndicate 1 hour
A. Tutorial:
Questions to Discuss
Note: each PBL group should answer one question and present it to the rest of the class.
PBL 1 and 6: question a
PBL 2 and 7: question b
PBL 3 and 8: question c
PBL 4 and 9: question d
PBL 5 and 10: question e

Influenza constantly outsmarts the immune system, however, the immune system generally wins. Discuss.
Subset questions:
a)

Describe briefly the influenza virus, its pathogenesis, how it is transmitted and diagnosed.

b)

People can become immune to infection. How does this occur? Why is this immunity not
usually long lasting?

c)

How is influenza able to outsmart the immune system? Explain the terms antigenic drift and
antigenic shift of the influenza virus?

d)

Which form of antigenic variation is associated with pandemic influenza?Is influenza seasonal?
If so, justify your answer. Is reporting and surveillance of this virus important and if so why?

e)

Swine flu (H1N1), is an influenza A subtype that was responsible for the 2009 pandemic. The
virus is thought to have arisen from reassortment of different influenza strains, what was the
origins of the swine flu virus? Why was swine flu regarded as a public health emergency?

Where did the 2009 H1N1 flu virus come from?

The 2009 H1N1 influenza virus (referred to as swine flu early on) was first detected in people in the
United States in April 2009. This virus was originally referred to as swine flu because laboratory testing
showed that its gene segments were similar to influenza viruses that were most recently identified in and
known to circulate among pigs. CDC believes that this virus resulted from reassortment, a process
through which two or more influenza viruses can swap genetic information by infecting a single human or
animal host. When reassortment does occur, the virus that emerges will have some gene segments from
each of the infecting parent viruses and may have different characteristics than either of the parental
viruses, just as children may exhibit unique characteristics that are like both of their parents. In this
case, the reassortment appears most likely to have occurred between influenza viruses circulating in
North American pig herds and among Eurasian pig herds. Reassortment of influenza viruses can result in
abrupt, major changes in influenza viruses, also known as antigenic shift. When shift happens, most
people have little or no protection against the new influenza virus that results.

Why was the swine flu regarded as a public health emergency?

Declaration is a standard operating procedure that allows necessary precautions to be taken in

advance

Release of stockpiled antivirals

External reading resources:

http://www.who.int/topics/influenza/en/
http://www.immunise.health.gov.au/internet/immunise/publishing.nsf/Content/immunise-influenza

http://www.vidrl.org.au/surveillance/flu%20reports/flu_idx.html
th
Goering et al. Mims Medical Microbiology 5 ed Ch 19 pg 223-228
Other useful resources:
http://www.myvaccination.com.au
http://www.chainofprotection.org