This is not a truly original post but about an article I read in The Sun today.
What does H1N1 mean?
As the strain originated from America and since America is in the northern hemisphere, it was named "A(H1N1)'. ~by Doctor H.
This is obviously wrong.
The real answer was given by a government veterinarian.
In A(H1N1), A refers to the influenza category.
The H is haemagglutinin, a surface protein that binds the virus to the host cell that is being attacked.
N stands for neuraminidase, an enzyme that penetrates the host cell.
Both H and N are present in the cell membrane of the viruses.
There are 16 kinds of H and only ninekinds of N. And that is why we have numerical digits in the influenza strains.
The bracketed letters and numbers refer to the specific strain or sub-type of the category,Dr K explained.
If you do not believe me click on the picture to enlarge or go to sun2surf.com and check out today's paper page 3.
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