HKU Bulletin May 2008 (Vol. 9 No. 2)

9 F ears of a global flu pandemic have been growing ever since the first outbreak of bird flu in Hong Kong in 1997. And, although in the last decade, research on the ecology and pathogenesis of influenza has increased steadily scientists say there is still much to learn if we are to minimize the morbidity, mortality and socio- economic disruption that will follow the next flu-pandemic. Now, thanks to a multi-million dollar grant from the University Grants Committee (UGC), and other sources, HKU will capitalize on its well- establ ished excel lence in influenza research to lead a multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional team in developing a synergistic programme that will have a global impact. Together with leading scientists f rom The Chinese Uni vers i ty of Hong Kong (CUHK), the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), and the Baptist University and several government departments, the HKU team aims to integrate basic, clinical and epidemiological research to enhance understanding of the avian flu viruses (such as H5N1) from which pandemics arise as well as the ‘regular’ seasonal influenza (which claims up to a thousand lives annually in Hong Kong alone). The eight-year project, part of the Area of Excellence (AoE) scheme, will build on a niche advantage and the international excellence already achieved in this area to define the ecology and evolution of animal and human influenza. It will also seek to identify the viral and host determinants, the complexities of anti-viral immunity and inter-species transmission and go on to develop new options for diagnosis, vaccines and therapy. Project Director, Professor Malik Peiris, of our Department of Microbiology, said: “This is an urgent issue; pandemic influenza is inevitable and will have immense health and socio-economic impact on today’s globalised and interconnected world. Yet many of the key questions regarding the emergence, transmission and pathogenesis of pandemic and seasonal influenza remain unanswered. “There is still the fear that bird flu could cause a pandemic, it has not done so yet but that does not mean it will not happen. If we look at the parallel with the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), that was a virus in animals that kept jumping the species barrier and that was probably going on unknown for some time until finally it made the switch to transmit efficiently. I think we are in a similar situation with avian flu. But we also have to keep in mind that there are a number of avian viruses out there and H5N1 is not the only pandemic threat.” One of the major focuses of the programme is to look beyond H5N1, to conduct a broad ecological surveillance. Explaining the rationale behind this Professor Guan Yi of our Department of Microbiology, an expert in viral ecology said: “Many other viruses are at least on a par with H5N1 in terms of a pandemic threat. For example H9N2 – this is widespread in poultry all the way from Japan to Europe, and although it does not cause diseases it does infect humans and the fact that it is not lethal at the moment does not mean it cannot be a pandemic candidate. So this is an opportune time to start this project.” Given that two of the three flu pandemics of the 20th century are known to have emerged from Southern China and caused two million combined deaths the importance of establishing a world-class Influenza Research Centre here is clear. The The Flu Hunters The race to avert an impending pandemic has received a massive boost from government funding. Professor Malik Peiris COVER STORY 8