Xinhuanet, Washington, July 2 (Reuters) - Researchers from the United States released a report on the 2nd that the H1N1 strain of influenza A virus is not very efficient in "binding" human respiratory receptors, and its ability to spread from person to person is weaker than other types of influenza. virus.
Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report in a new issue of the journal Science that human respiratory cells have an umbrella-like alpha 2-6 sugar receptor on their surface and that influenza viruses infect humans Its ability to "bind" this receptor with its hemagglutinin.
The researchers found that the H1N1 influenza virus "binds" to the umbrella alpha 2-6 sugar receptor with low efficiency against the H1N1 influenza virus, the seasonal influenza virus, and the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic. For other flu viruses.
Through experimental analysis, the researchers also found that the PB2 gene had a special sequence in the virus that caused the influenza pandemic, but the H1N1 influenza virus lacked this sequence, which may also limit its ability to spread. However, compared with seasonal influenza, the H1N1 flu can cause more human intestinal discomfort.
Experiments conducted on ferrets also found that the spread of influenza A H1N1 virus was relatively inefficient. When the ferrets are in close contact with each other, the virus can spread rapidly. Once they are separated from each other, the virus can only be transmitted through the airborne ferret droplets, and its ability to spread is greatly reduced. Ferret is a commonly used animal model for the study of influenza. They are similar to humans in the way they are affected by the influenza virus. (Reporter Ren Haijun)