Cold and Flu

Yes, influenza is considered armed and dangerous because this viral and contagious disease kills many people each year. It had been especially dangerous years back when there was no stable vaccine to eliminate the virus.

neither...it is a virus, and gram-staining, a microbiology tool, is not used to help identify or classify a virus

Hand sanitizer kills both good and bad germs on your hands. It is important to remember that some good bacteria are necessary for maintaining a healthy microbiome on your skin. It is recommended to use hand sanitizer when soap and water are not available and to not rely on it as a daily hygiene routine.

I believe it is lytic. Think: colds are fast acting; they don't sit in your cell for years on end. This means they are lytic (fast acting).

West Nile virus is a viral infection, not a bacterial one. It is primarily transmitted to humans through the bites of infected mosquitoes.

No, Tamiflu (oseltamivir) does not contain sulfa. It is a neuraminidase inhibitor used to treat and prevent influenza virus infections.

It was a team effort. Teams of scientists from the Centers from Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO), and public health departments from several other nations worked together to identify and isolate the virus that was causing the outbreak in Mexico, California and Texas in the US.

One of the scientists mentioned to have been involved in the analysis was the leading virologist, Wendy Barclay, who on May 1, 2009 determined that there were characteristics of the virus that resembled other viruses that had caused only mild symptoms and she indicated that this new 2009 H1N1 influenza was unlikely to give most people serious symptoms.

It was just prior to that when on April 27, 2009 the CDC Scientists in Atlanta were able to document the genome sequence of the new strain to share with other scientists in their databases. Not long afterward, on May 6, 2009, Canadian scientists from Winnipeg were able to share the full genetic sequencing of the viruses that had struck Mexico and Canada.

The scientists all over the world remain very busy working and sharing information to further various studies of the pandemic flu still underway.

Influenza primarily infects birds and mammals, including humans. It is a virus that affects the respiratory system and can cause symptoms such as fever, cough, and body aches.

N95 is a type of respirator mask that is recommended for healthcare workers when caring for patients with infectious diseases like H1N1 influenza. N95 masks can filter out 95% of airborne particles, including viruses, and are designed to provide a tight seal around the face to enhance protection.

No, measles and smallpox are two different infectious diseases caused by different viruses. Measles is caused by the measles virus (MeV), while smallpox is caused by the variola virus. Both diseases can be prevented through vaccination, but they have different symptoms and levels of severity.

Yes, it is generally safe to eat eggs when you have a common cold. Eggs are a good source of protein, vitamins, and minerals that can help support your immune system during illness. However, if you have an egg allergy or any adverse reactions to eggs, it is best to avoid them.

Typically no injuries are accommodated with the flu. Some people can die if their immune system is substantially weak and they don't receive the proper medical attention. Usually a headache is the first symptom with a sharply rising temperature then the cough and runny nose kicks in.

Not really in any big way. Being out in cold weather does not cause the common cold. While a noticeable increase in the numbers of common colds and the flu season happen during the winter, it is the microorganisms that cause the common cold and flu and not the temperature. However, cold weather could make certain symptoms worse. For instance, a runny nose can be worse when out in the cold even if you don't have a common cold viral infection. Being out when you have a cold adds to the constant blowing and wiping of your nose. That can cause the skin to become raw and dry which allows the cold temperature to accentuate the soreness.

The viral genome typically enters a cell during infection, which contains the genetic material needed for viral replication. The protein coat of the virus, known as the capsid, helps deliver the genetic material into the host cell.

A while ago. It just recently started being given out to patients.

P.S - I would recommend this shot. I felt a little light headed the next day but I won't get the flu so it's all worth it !

Yes, it likely would if they were in the active stages of the viral infection when you hug them. Any close contact directly with another person can pass the flu virus to you which is why you are advised to stay a minimum of 6 feet away from anyone with the flu and they are advised to cover coughs and sneezes which, along with touching contaminated surfaces, is the most common way the flu viruses are transmitted from person to person.

Anybody can potentially die from any flu, swine or otherwise. Those without a spleen are at a higher risk of developing chest infections (like pneunomia), but the spleen does not have anything to do with fighting any type of flu or whether you will die from it.

Influenza is typically treated with antiviral medications such as oseltamivir (Tamiflu) or zanamivir (Relenza). These medications can help reduce the severity and duration of symptoms if taken within 48 hours of symptom onset. Rest, hydration, and over-the-counter medications to relieve symptoms like fever and cough are also recommended.

The different types of influenza have different reservoirs. To talk only of the types that humans get, the largest reservoir for human influenza Type A viruses (those that we see most often in seasonal flu and that cause pandemics of the flu) is the human being.

In the bird flu that humans can get (Type A Avian Influenza H5N1 and H7N9), the biggest reservoir is wild aquatic fowl such as shorebirds, ducks and geese, but also commercial chicken farmers see it in their fowl, but less frequently.

Influenza A viruses are also frequently isolated in pigs and horses. It is believed that the animal reservoirs are where most new human subtypes of influenza develop. This is true of the H1N1/09 pandemic swine flu which started in pigs and birds before mutating to be able to infect humans.

Swine have been demonstrated to have receptors for both human and bird flu viruses, and as such are considered a potential mixing vessel for human, swine and avian viruses.

(For more about that reassortant process that occurred with the H1N1/09 Swine Flu, see the related question about what caused the swine flu.)

Because the rhinovirus (which is one virus that causes the common cold) mutates and changes its structure extremely frequently as do the other viruses that cause the common cold, such as Coronaviruses, and any of the others of hundreds of viruses that cause colds. While influenza strains also mutate, it is not as quickly as cold viruses that almost constantly are mutating, resulting in several dozen active viruses in any one locality.

In addition, influenza has proven reasonably easy to grow in labs for study and for vaccine production, while cultivating rhinoviruses has proven very difficult.

Haemophilus influenza is a small, pleomorphic, gram-negative coccobacillus, meaning it can appear as both cocci (spherical) or bacilli (rod-shaped) under the microscope. Its shape can vary from very short rods to more elongated forms.

ABC.

A is the worst, causes pandemics and epidemics

B causes epidemics

C is minimally problematic

If you're talking about strains, you have 9 types of Hemagglutinin and 16 types of Neuraminidase. So H5N1 (swine flue from a couple years ago) has Hemagluttinin number 5 and Neuraminidase number 1

Yes, H5N1 is an influenza virus, which means it has a protein coat called a capsid surrounding its genetic material. The capsid helps protect the virus and enables it to infect host cells.

Viruses do not cause decay because they are not capable of carrying out metabolic activities on their own. Decay is typically caused by bacteria and fungi that can break down organic matter. Viruses rely on infecting host cells to replicate and do not have the ability to break down complex organic material.

No. Viruses are not living things, so they do not have an immune system. In a way, however, they can protect themselves from us by mutating their own form so that our immune system can not recognize them any more. Until our bodies learn again that they are a foreign invader in our cells and then create new cells that can destroy the new mutation of the virus, it does have a chance to safely be in our bodies. While in our cells, a virus makes our cells do its main function (which is replication of itself). The mutation that it does by changing the make up of the proteins on its capsid (outer shell) allows it to bypass our immune systems temporarily.