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Forty five percent of the Israeli population were infected with the influenza B Victoria virus during the winter season 2015-16.

Authors :
Sharabi S
Bassal R
Friedman N
Drori Y
Alter H
Glatman-Freedman A
Hindiyeh M
Cohen D
Mendelson E
Shohat T
Mandelboim M
Source :
Oncotarget [Oncotarget] 2017 Dec 22; Vol. 9 (5), pp. 6623-6629. Date of Electronic Publication: 2017 Dec 22 (Print Publication: 2018).
Publication Year :
2017

Abstract

While infection with influenza A viruses has been extensively investigated, infections with influenza B viruses which are commonly categorized into the highly homologous Victoria and Yamagata lineages, are less studied, despite their considerable virulence. Here we used RT-PCR assays, hemagglutination inhibition assays and antibody titers to determine the levels of influenza B infection. We report of high influenza B Victoria virus prevalence in the 2015-16 winter season in Israel, affecting approximately half of the Israeli population. We further show that the Victoria B virus infected individuals of all ages and that it was present in the country throughout the entire winter season. The vaccine however included the inappropriate Yamagata virus. We propose that a quadrivalent vaccine, that includes both Yamagata and Victoria lineages, should be considered for future influenza vaccination.<br />Competing Interests: CONFLICTS OF INTEREST None.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1949-2553
Volume :
9
Issue :
5
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Oncotarget
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
29464098
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.18632/oncotarget.23601