The Flu Interview

Honestly, who hasn't gotten the flu at one time or another in their life? You're miserable, fatigued, and you want to spend your afternoon lounging on the couch with a blanket on watching your favorite movie. When considering who we were going to interview for our grid computing project we really had to think about it. Everyone could technically be considered an expert having fallen to its peril at least once, but who would give us the best insight about Influenza and then it hit us...

Flashback to Fall semester of 2012: sitting in the back row in a sleepless stupor, only half listening to rambles about upcoming quizzes and tentative test dates. Oh, the joys of Microbiology at Rockhurst. Learning about bacteria and viruses that you'd never want to be infected by. It was then that Nicole and I (Katie) learned about Influenza together and its transforming properties that probably make it one of the most interesting viruses out there. So, in running with tradition, we chose to interview Dr. Janet Cooper. Dr. Cooper is a Professor of Biology at Rockhurst, who is well versed in all things Influenza, making her absolutely perfect to do the job! So without further adieu, our interview with Dr. Cooper:

                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

Why did you choose this field/career path?

I enjoy teaching, specifically Cell Biology. During my undergrad I avoided Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy (luckily!) and took Cell Biology instead. I was fascinated by the properties of water and how important it was to learn about concepts at a cellular level in order to understand the big concepts.

Obviously you have come in contact with hundreds of people who have contracted the flu, or have had it yourself, what is the importance of obtaining the flu vaccine?

Getting the flu vaccine is not only important for protecting you but also for protecting others who have some form of immunodeficiency. The idea of 'herd immunity' is very important when dealing with Influenza because it protects the people who are unable to receive the vaccine themselves due to immune compromised diseases like cancer.

Do you have any interesting stories about Influenza?

Actually I do. Recently, a  very close friend of mine contracted just a common form of the flu and due to him being immuno-compromised due to kidney dialysis, he was unable to receive the yearly flu shot. After a period of time he developed pneumonia and died shortly after. Unfortunately, it's situations like this where people do not realize the importance of getting a vaccine as a simple method to protect everyone around you.

Why should a doctor or researcher studying Influenza know about evolution?

 It's important that both doctors and researchers that are studying/treating Influenza know about evolution because they need to understand that change can and does occur. In the doctor's case, they need to know because they need to understand the best methods for treatment, like when and when not to use antibiotics. In the case of researchers, it is important to understand the importance of evolution in the study of Influenza in order to tailor and develop new medicines or vaccines to treat different strains. 

Does evolution play a role in the life of the Influenza virus?

Absolutely, you begin to see selection over time, once you get a vaccine developed for the current strains that are most likely to cause the worst symptoms, a new strain transforms. We never know if a more hazardous strain of Influenza will appear and there is always a possibility for a large epidemic that is difficult to treat due to recombination and mutations [In case you're a bit rusty the running definition evolution stands as the change of allele frequency over a period of time].

Is there anything unique about Influenza as compared to other viruses (infection cycle, etc)?

It contains eight different strands that are able to go through recombination and mutate. This is not necessarily unique to Influenza but what researchers are finding is that there are certain species, like birds, that serve as 'mixing vessels' for different Influenza viruses. Due to its ability to infect a vast amount of species, this can create a very unique strain of Influenza that may be difficult to treat.

Have you ever heard of/used grid commuting in your research?

I have never used it myself, but my brother is well versed in the topic! He was recently on the news as one of the discoverers of the largest known prime number. His group uses over one thousand computers to solve complex math problems. 

Fox 4 KC- Largest Prime Number Grid Computing

What do you think about using grid computing as a means of solving complex issues about Influenza?

 It may be important to use to help analyze a drug or vaccine. Grid computing would be very useful in testing to determine if an enzyme can fit at the cellular level to deactivate the virus. It could be used to solve many other things about Influenza as well.

Do you think resistance is a major issue in common society, not just with bacteria but also with viruses?

 Without a doubt, people look at antibiotics as the end all be all. It is not uncommon for patients to see their doctor and demand antibiotics, which may not always be needed in the case of a viral infection. On top of the over-prescribed, patients often misuse them by not taking the full dosage after seeing symptoms diminish. 

In microbiology, we learned that the efficacy of hand sanitizers is marginal as compared to traditional hand-washing (with soap); do you think that this may have an effect on resistant Influenza viruses?

No, in the case of Influenza, neither hand sanitizers nor hand-washing produce any type of resistance. 

Over the MANY misconceptions that exist about Influenza, what ones do you think are the most important to disprove and why?

So much of the general public believes that the flu is also the stomach flu (which is generally caused by the Norwalk Virus). A very large misconception. Another issue that is seen very frequently is people believing that the flu vaccine will give you the flu. This is ludicrous. People always say "As soon as I got the flu shot, I got sick with the flu." This could be the case, but the general public does not realize that there are only three strains of Influenza contained in the flu vaccine, which means that they could be infected with one of the other 100+ strains of Influenza that is out at any given point in time. This misconception is very hard to eliminate in the public because of their lack of knowledge about the flu itself.  

How successfully can Influenza exist outside the body (specifically on surfaces/inanimate objects)?

It varies from surface to surface but the CDC states that it is about 2-8 hours before Influenza succumbs to environmental stresses. The best way to disinfect is using alcohol, iodophors, or some other type of disinfectant. 

Finally, why is it important for students studying in Biology to learn about Influenza?

Most of the time you will become some type of health professionals so it will be important to know it then. Also, it is very important for students to learn about Influenza in order to spread the knowledge and educate the general public about Influenza. The vaccine is not able to prevent catching the flu 100% so it is important for students to be educated and help others to understand this. Influenza will be with us forever, it is the model for change, so the best way to prevent it is through education about it. 

                                                                                                           

So that's it, our interview about the flu. Did anything surprise you or catch your eye? I found it very interesting how evolution, even in something as simple as the flu, can play such a large role in developing new vaccines and treatments in modern medicine. I was also shocked how long the virus remains active on surfaces! It will make me think twice before touching the door handle into Massman after I've seen someone sneeze in their hand. Dr. Cooper was a wonderful person to interview and find out more on the flu without actually catching the flu! Reflecting on the interview, I am glad that we chose to do our grid computing project on Influenza. It's something that everyone has to deal with but a very few amount of people know a lot about. So hopefully this post educates you about Influenza, helping you know a little bit more than you did  yesterday. I'm going to end this post with this question: did you get your flu shot this year?