Hitoshi Oshitani

..In recent years, refugees and internally displaced persons have been increasing. Our study aims to define the epidemiological characteristics and risk factors associated with measles outbreaks in displaced populations...

..Such an event will inevitably have a global effect. Therefore, improving pandemic preparedness in every country, particularly developing ones, is urgently needed...

..There are still significant gaps in the scientific evidence of the way in which influenza viruses are transmitted. Further studies should be conducted to define the basic transmission patterns of influenza viruses...

..Many aspects of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 are different from what we had been expecting. We should reconsider the concepts and the strategies for influenza pandemic by reviewing current pandemic (H1N1)...

..The results suggest that it is necessary to monitor genome dynamics to understand the evolution and mechanism of the emergence and spread of antiviral resistance among influenza A viruses...

..This finding suggests that the 5'NCR region may be associated with viremia...

..However, the proportion of these, which can be less than 1%, is too low to be detected by conventional methods. Such mixed populations in which reassortment occurs may have a significant role in the evolution of viruses...

..Despite some limitations in this study, plural NPEVs with multiple patterns of circulation in the Philippines for 17 years were identified...

..The evolutionary characteristics of the H1 gene of the 2009 H1N1 virus differed from those of seasonal and swine viruses...

....

..Pneumonia remains a leading cause of child death in developing countries. The viruses in severe pneumonia remain poorly defined...

..Human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV) is the leading cause of acute lower respiratory tract infection in infants and young children. However, molecular characteristic of HRSV is still unknown in the Philippines...

..This is a highly sensitive method and its cost is low. Influenza surveillance using this assay would provide significant information on the epidemiology of both pandemic and seasonal influenza...

..Because the recent rapid increase in drug-resistant virus is associated with the substitution at position 31, the resistance may not be related to drug use...

..All 21 patients we identified had severe illness, and 2 died, possibly the first reported fatal cases associated with EV68 infection. Our study suggests that EV68 may be a possible causative agent of severe respiratory illnesses...

..There was no difference between the amino acid sequences of the hexon and fiber genes that may affect tissue tropism in Mongolian strains and those in EKC-causing strains...

..However, a re-emergence of measles cases occurred in 2007, which was caused by other genotypes and the previous circulating genotype had disappeared...

..This RT-PCR/RFLP assay is a simple method and also very specific and sensitive for detecting the H275Y mutation of pandemic influenza A (H1N1) 2009 viruses, and can be used in resource-limited settings...

..We indicate the sites that probably contributed to the acquisition of efficient human-to-human transmission...

..In contrast, for some other viruses, genetically similar strains can spread and circulate all over the world. This study addresses global dissemination of various viral infections...

..The Yamagata lineage of influenza B was detected in one patient from western Japan, indicating the importing of viruses into the affected area...

..None of the study participants had been vaccinated for pandemic A (H1N1) 2009 before the second samples were collected...

..However, the overall picture of community transmission is not well defined during actual outbreaks. We conducted a community-based prospective cohort study to describe the transmission characteristics of influenza in Mongolia...

..Besides, novel vaccines targeting M1 or M2 protein to confer cross subtype protection have been under development. We conducted the present study to investigate the evolution of the M gene by analyzing its sequence in different species...

..In such cases, investigating measles would give important information about the course of emerging infectious diseases...

..Human metapneumovirus, human bocavirus, human coronavirus HKU1, KI virus, and WU virus were detected for the first time in the Philippines; Melaka virus was not found...

..It is important to identify some gaps in the implementation of interventions for further preparedness...

..This in turns means that an urgent need will arise for appropriate measures reducing this potentially huge burden during pandemic (H1N1) 2009 outbreak in Japan...

..In addition, we have also reviewed a few human cases of avian influenza A (H5N1) infection where the central nervous system (CNS) are involved...

..Whole-genome sequencing results indicated that this was due to a further reassortment event...

..Among them, position 206 is located in an antigenic site. We did not find significant negative selection on any of the receptor binding sites. The virus has been evolving under unique selective pressure...

..In the future, clarifying the detailed mechanisms of packaging as well as the function of the RNA sequence in the untranslated region will increase the understanding of viral life cycles and evolution...

..In this article, the authors have tried to summarize this conference and discuss future prospects of pandemic preparedness and response...

..Phylogenetic analysis indicated that plural genetically distinct clusters co-circulated. These results suggest that that difficulty in EV68 isolation leads to an underestimation of the prevalence of EV68 infections...

..Intranasal immunization of mice with GP42-H1 induced HA-specific IgG and IgA antibodies in sera and mucosal sites without causing any disease symptoms. Immunized mice were also protected from lethal dose challenge of influenza A virus...

..However, CFRs are higher in small children (<5 years) and adults. The transmission to these age groups may possibly have been minimized through aggressive suspension of classes in schools...

..CONCLUSIONS: A high vaccination rate for both residents and HCWs may reduce the risk of ILI and institutional outbreaks in nursing homes...

..Predominant amino acid substitutions in M2 protein occurred at position 31 (serine to asparagine) in H3N2 strains and at position 27 (valine to alanine) in H1N1 strains...

..Measures should be taken to reduce contact, as much as possible, between persons taking and those not taking antiviral drugs for treatment or chemoprophylaxis...

..The World Health Organization's Western Pacific Regional Office identified 40 rumors; 9 were verified to be true. Rumor surveillance informed immediate public health action and prevented unnecessary and costly responses...

..Retrospective analysis suggests that mass vaccination with oral cholera vaccines can be a useful adjunct tool for controlling outbreaks, particularly if implemented early in association with other standard control measures...

....

....