The Influenza-A mystery: Insight from Bioinformatics resources and analysis

Sir, Bioinformatics is a tool which can excavate any information, one wants to obtain. I found its implication in handling an emerging and highly pathogenic strain of Influenza virus, H5N1. The first influenza pandemic was happened in 1918 “Spanish flu” followed by Asian flu in 1957 caused by H2N2. Moreover, one million deaths were reported in Hong Kong due to H3N2 outbreak during 1968. The antigenic shift and drift of influenza A virus led to a new strain H1N1 in 1977 “Russian flu”. After two decades a new strain, H5N1 was evolved, called avian influenza virus. The outbreaks of this strain were continued till 2008 with the yearly epidemic in the world. In 2009, WHO has declared Influenza pandemic due to the outbreak of H1N1. The disease has infected over 35928 people in 80 countries, with 163 deaths. But it has been most severe in Mexico, which has reported the highest number of fatalities.