2008 Woodie Awards
On the virus beat
Zhi Xiong - The Daily Iowan
Issue date: 10/16/07 Section: Metro
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A UI researcher and his colleagues have found that some virus strains, common culprits for stomach flu or colds, cause more serious illnesses than others in both civilian and military populations.
In one of the biggest studies of adenoviruses in the United States to date, the researchers surveyed 2,237 samples from military and civilian patients between 2004 and 2006. Gregory Gray of the UI Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases and his colleagues were surprised that types 5 and 21 caused serious illnesses, though they were previously rarely known to do so.
"We don't know why some strains cause more serious diseases," he said. "The jury is still out on that."
With more than 50 identified strains causing infections in lungs, eyes, stomach, and even the brain, severe outbreaks of adenoviruses are more often found among military personnel, health-care facilities, and group homes. The virus is transmitted by direct contact, borne in fecal matter and even water-transmitted, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Though military recruits were once vaccinated against types 4 and 7, the immunization was pulled in the late 1990s. But the viruses returned, causing several outbreaks and deaths among military personnel.
While often associated with the common cold, adenoviruses can be deadly for those with weakened immune systems when it causes severe respiratory infections such as pneumonia and bronchitis. Children under 7 years old, patients who had undergone chemotheraphy, or those who received transplants were especially susceptible to the viruses, the study found.
A separate survey in 2003 revealed half of bone-marrow transplant mortalities were caused by adenovirus infections.
Type 21 is one strain of the viruses that has become increasingly common and proved fatal in two out of 13 cases, the new study showed. Gray said he received word of an type 21 outbreak at the Coast Guard training center in Cape May, N.J., just this week.
In one of the biggest studies of adenoviruses in the United States to date, the researchers surveyed 2,237 samples from military and civilian patients between 2004 and 2006. Gregory Gray of the UI Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases and his colleagues were surprised that types 5 and 21 caused serious illnesses, though they were previously rarely known to do so.
"We don't know why some strains cause more serious diseases," he said. "The jury is still out on that."
With more than 50 identified strains causing infections in lungs, eyes, stomach, and even the brain, severe outbreaks of adenoviruses are more often found among military personnel, health-care facilities, and group homes. The virus is transmitted by direct contact, borne in fecal matter and even water-transmitted, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Though military recruits were once vaccinated against types 4 and 7, the immunization was pulled in the late 1990s. But the viruses returned, causing several outbreaks and deaths among military personnel.
While often associated with the common cold, adenoviruses can be deadly for those with weakened immune systems when it causes severe respiratory infections such as pneumonia and bronchitis. Children under 7 years old, patients who had undergone chemotheraphy, or those who received transplants were especially susceptible to the viruses, the study found.
A separate survey in 2003 revealed half of bone-marrow transplant mortalities were caused by adenovirus infections.
Type 21 is one strain of the viruses that has become increasingly common and proved fatal in two out of 13 cases, the new study showed. Gray said he received word of an type 21 outbreak at the Coast Guard training center in Cape May, N.J., just this week.
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