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Virology Down Under

Facts, data, info, expert opinion and a reasonable, occasionally grumpy, voice on viruses: what they are, how they tick and the illnesses they may cause.

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Putting PCR into real-time

Putting PCR into real-time

Three letters have been very busy in 2020: P. C. and R. The Polymerase Chain Reaction. It’s a tiny, thermally controlled, cyclical, enzyme-driven, chemical reaction which lets scientists identify the Read More ...

The Swiss cheese infographic that went viral

The Swiss cheese infographic that went viral

A visual representation of how to prevent transmission of SARS-CoV-2 struck a chord with many in 2020. I won’t rehash all that has already been written about the Swiss cheese Read More ...

The mechanics of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)…a primer

The mechanics of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)…a primer

The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a technique for copying a piece of DNA a billion-fold. As the name suggests, the process creates a chain of many pieces, in this Read More ...

There are plenty of placebo-controlled vaccine trials

Posted onDecember 31, 2019September 22, 202011 Comments

The agglomeration of anti-vaxxers love to plague us with their pro-disease perfidy. They really enjoy wheeling out the lie that vaccines have never been tested with a placebo. Turns out, Read More …

CategoriesDebunking, Vaccines & vaccinationTagsPlacebo

Measles in Samoa – a couple of referenced facts

Posted onDecember 30, 2019December 30, 20193 Comments

Measles has killed 81 people in Samoa so far, mostly children. Meanwhile, like a pack of hyenas laughing maniacally off stage, the anti-vaccination cult is drooling over the harm and Read More …

CategoriesDebunking, Measles

Measles has peaked in Samoa…

Posted onDecember 11, 2019December 27, 20192 Comments

In one of the most satisfying graphs I’ve ever made, this plot of weekly measles cases – both suspected and confirmed (the minority) – shows that the epidemic of measles Read More …

CategoriesMeasles, Vaccines & vaccinationTagsSamoa

Anti-vaxxers hate your children

Posted onNovember 27, 2019December 1, 201912 Comments

What is happening in Samoa is exactly what science and history tell us to expect when the measles virus is introduced into a population with low immunity. Sick, hospitalised, immune-damaged Read More …

CategoriesEditorial, Vaccines & vaccinationTagsanti-vaccination, Samoa

An early look at influenza in the US highlights that the south does not predict the north

Posted onNovember 24, 2019November 24, 20191 Comment

Influenza (flu) hit Australia earlier in 2019 than it had for many years. It reached a very high peak of cases and the flu season lasted for longer than usual. Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsepidemiology, United States of America

Buy a gift with real impact this year

Posted onNovember 19, 2019November 25, 2019Leave a comment

Hi All. This is just a small festive season appeal to you. Please consider spending a few dollars on those in need of our support in the lead-up to the Read More …

CategoriesUncategorized

H3N2 is 50 years old and still going strong

Posted onNovember 19, 2019November 19, 20191 Comment

The highly variable H3N2 influenza viruses which seem to cause us the most trouble, heartache and headlines have only been with us since 1968. These tiny droplets of dread emerged Read More …

CategoriesInfluenza, Vaccines & vaccinationTagsA/H3N2, drift, Immunology, Imprinting

Measles in the Pacific via travel from New Zealand

Posted onOctober 25, 2019October 25, 2019Leave a comment

Below are some of the latest numbers around the epidemic of measles in New Zealand, and the outbreaks in Australia which are currently linked to New Zealand via infected travellers. Read More …

CategoriesMeaslesTagsNew Zealand

Flu B viruses: why not H-something-N-something?

Posted onOctober 1, 2019October 1, 2019Leave a comment

The world of influenza (Flu) is filled with many strange things. One of these is why we label the influenza A (FluA) viruses with an “H” (short for the name Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsFluB, FluC, FLUCV, FLUDV, IFDV, influenza D virus

The reality of vaccination success…

Posted onSeptember 23, 2019September 23, 20191 Comment

Perhaps we all forget just how well vaccines have protected us over the decades. Here’s a reminder! Vaccination success is not something we keep in front of mind because it’s Read More …

CategoriesVaccines & vaccinationTagsImmunisation

Flu in a ScienceWeek flash 🏃

Posted onSeptember 11, 2019September 17, 2019Leave a comment

I was asked to present a talk for science week 2019. I thought an explanation of the unprecedented 2019 influenza (flu) season (nicknamed flunami) would be a good talk. But Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsEiC

Could Measles virus and Ebola virus be working together in the DRC?

Posted onSeptember 7, 2019September 9, 20192 Comments

Measles, resulting from measles virus (MeV) infection can cause immune suppression and “immune amnesia”. MeV infection most often affects non-immune children but can occur in any age group. Immune suppression Read More …

CategoriesEbola virus, Measles, Vaccines & vaccination

#Flunami2019: Australia’s biggest confirmed flu count on record

Posted onSeptember 1, 2019December 13, 20191 Comment

For those who love a good multiple of 1,000, or enjoy drooling over the passing of a historical threshold, yesterday was such a day for influenza (flu) counts in Australia. Read More …

CategoriesUncategorized

Testing out OpenStreetMap stuff

Posted onAugust 20, 2019August 22, 20191 Comment

To bring you and I some better maps and to try and prove that this old dog can still learn new tricks, I’ve had a go at using OpenStreetMap via Read More …

CategoriesEbola virusTagsMaps, OpenStreetMaps

The 2019 Flunami was more than just increased testing

Posted onAugust 15, 2019August 16, 2019Leave a comment

The Flunami (see a definition here before you decide upon your own dear reader) has been a rising tide of influenza cases. It was more than just increased testing though. Read More …

CategoriesInfluenza, Laboratory methodsTags131K, A/H3N2, Australia, flu season, flunami, H1N1, H1N1pdmo09, H3N2, phylogeny

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Recent Posts

  • Putting PCR into real-time January 2, 2021
  • The mechanics of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)…a primer December 28, 2020
  • The Swiss cheese infographic that went viral December 26, 2020
  • Happy Festive Season to all who read this…. December 24, 2020
  • The “false-positive PCR” problem is not a problem November 22, 2020
  • More testing shows more iceberg October 29, 2020
  • Sigh, yes, the ‘COVID virus’ is real October 6, 2020
  • Yes, PCR tests can detect “the COVID virus” August 4, 2020
  • And another thing…on false positives June 29, 2020
  • Rhinovirus rampant or testing triumphant? June 27, 2020
  • We don’t yet know the origin story for SARS-CoV-2 May 4, 2020
  • Kits and reagents and viruses April 12, 2020
  • COVID-19 cases slow a little in Australia March 27, 2020
  • COVID-19 is not a virus, but SARS-CoV-2 is March 21, 2020
  • Politically infectious period March 20, 2020

All opinions are my own and do not represent medical advice or the views of any institution.

All graphics made by me are free-to-use. Please just cite the particular page, blog and me. A heads-up would be nice, but that can happen later.

Tags

A/H3N2 anti-vaccination asymptomatic Australia avian influenza China Democratic Republic of the Congo DRC Ebola virus Ebola virus disease epidemic epidemiology EVD Flu flu season genotype H1N1 H3N2 H7N9 HTLV HTLV-1c influenza influenza virus MERS MERS-CoV molecular epidemiology outbreak PCR pneumonia Queensland reporting respiratory virus rhinovirus RT-PCR SciComm science communication seasonal influenza social media SoMe summer transmission United States of America vaccine Wuhan Zaire ebolavirus

Regular reads…

  • FluTrackers-everything infectious, before it happens
  • Mike Coston’s Avian Flu Diary
  • Crawford Kilian’s infectious disease blog
  • Pathogen perspectives: Ebola and more
  • ProMED mail
  • WHO Disease Outbreak News
  • HealthMap
  • STAT News
  • CIDRAP-timely infectious disease reporting
  • Maia Majumder’s blog
  • Kai Kupferschmidt
  • Martin Enserink
  • EpiRamblings

 

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