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2004 SEP 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scientists have mapped the antigenic and genetic evolution of the influenza virus.
"The antigenic evolution of influenza A (H3N2) virus was quantified and visualized from its introduction into humans in 1968 to 2003. Although there was remarkable correspondence between antigenic and genetic evolution, significant differences were observed: Antigenic evolution was more punctuated than genetic evolution, and genetic change sometimes had a disproportionately large antigenic effect," investigators writing in the journal Science report.
"The method readily allows monitoring of antigenic differences among vaccine and circulating strains and thus estimation of the effects of vaccination," stated Derek J. Smith and colleagues at Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands. "Further, this approach offers a route to predicting the relative success of emerging strains, which could be achieved by ...
Source: HighBeam Research, Antigenic and genetic evolution of influenza virus mapped.