A father-of-two has died of suspected swine flu just ten days after his wedding.
Martin Clorley, 37, fell ill with flu symptoms two days after he married Nicola
Bartley, 39, on December 16.
He died in hospital on Boxing Day and the results of a post-mortem are expected to show that he was a victim of swine flu.
Health chiefs today closed a hospital to visitors in an effort to contain an outbreak of swine flu.
As 22 people battled the virus in intensive care across Merseyside and Cheshire, bosses banned friends and relatives from visiting wards at Arrowe Park Hospital.
A hospital spokesman said the drastic steps had been taken to 'reduce the risk of visitors with cold and flu symptoms spreading infections to patients and staff'.
Researchers analysed asthma sufferer's sputum and found that up to two thirds of the samplescontained a common garden mould, aspergillus fumigatus, which is usually found in soil and compost heaps
Many asthmatics have a mould growing in their lungs that could explain why they suffer such devastating breathing problems. The good news is that thesolution could be as simple as giving these patients anti-fungal antibiotics.
Asthma is a common condition where breathing tubes go into a spasm, making it difficult to breathe— around 5.4 million Britons have it. As many as a fifth of those with severe asthma suffer from permanent narrowing of the breathing tubes within the lungs.
Asthma attacks are often triggered by allergens, including pet hairs, pollen and mould. Now, a new study led by University of Leicester scientists at Glenfield Hospital has shown that mould might play another, significant role.
The researchers analysed patients’sputum— matter expelled from the respiratory tract such as phlegm— and found that up to two thirds of the samplescontained a common garden mould, aspergillus fumigatus, which is usually found in soil and compost heaps, though can also grow in homes.
They also found that peopleallergic to this mould had more permanently narrowed airways. The theory is that the mould produces chemicals which trigger inflammation in the tiny tubes of the lungs; this leads to gradual scarring and damage to the breathing tubes.
Asthma is usuallycontrolled with inhaled bronchodilators— these relax the muscle covering the airways in the lungs— and courses of inhaled steroids which damp down the inflammation. But the new research suggests antibiotics that tackle fungal infections could also prove useful.
‘Treating individuals in whom the mould is detected with anti-fungals may prevent fixed narrowing of the airways,’ says Professor AndyWardlaw, who led the study.
‘This is very exciting for people with asthma and could potentially help people with other chronic lung conditions, including cystic fibrosis, where similar processes are going on.’
Leanne Metcalf, Director of Research for Asthma UK, says:‘We are encouraged by the results of this unique study demonstrating that this specific type of mould, found in the lungs of people with severe asthma, is linked to asthma symptoms and reduced lung function.
‘These findings are a step in the right direction in establishing if people with severe asthma should be routinely tested for thepresence of fungal spores in their lungs and if anti-fungal agents could be helpful as a treatment.’
Some patients are already convinced that anti-fungals can help. Lili Yeadon, 63, a part-time research assistant from Loughborough, had severe asthma for six years— attacks left her coughing, short of breath andunable to walk far. She was referred to Professor Wardlaw, who diagnosed allergic bronchial pulmonary aspergillosis— where the mould grows in the lungs.
As part of a clinical trial, she was given anti-fungal treatment. Lili says:‘I don’t have any symptoms at the moment— no coughing, I can breathe much more easily, and I can walk a lot faster. It’s simply incredible.’
As well as being a trigger for asthma, mould can also cause health problems for peoplewithout allergies.
The most common problems are sinusitis, bronchitis and otherrespiratory conditions such as pneumonia.
Asthma attacks are often triggered by allergens, including pet hairs, pollen and mould. Now, a new study has shown that mould might play another, significant role
‘Mould is an opportunistic fungus, and grows aggressively in the body, stopping the organs working properly— so it can be lethal,’ says Malcolm Richardson, professor of medical mycology (the study of mould) at the University of Manchester.
If you have a mouldy carpet, for example, mould spores are released into the atmosphere, that you can then inhale.
Normally, the immune system detects the spores and helps you to get rid of them by coughing or sneezing.
But some people with poorer immune systems are unable to reject the spores, so they germinate in their lung tissue, causing inflammation.
Symptoms of a mould problem include coughing, constanttiredness, eye and throat irritation, headaches, skin irritation or nausea.
Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are being prescribed singinglessons to try and improve their symptoms.
COPD is a collection of lung diseases including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. It affects around 900,000 people in the UK— although it’s thought a further two million people have yet to be diagnosed. Smoking is the biggest risk factor.
One of the main symptoms is breathlessness while performing everyday activities such as climbing stairs or even getting dressed.
Previous research has shown that singing can combat this by helping patients control their breathing and posture.
Many patients also said the classes alleviated feelings of depression and anxiety, which is common sufferers with COPD.
In a new trial at the Royal Brompton Hospital, London, one group of patients will undergo twice-weekly vocal coaching for eight weeks. Another group will take part in a once-weekly film club.
At the end of the trial the relative health and level of physical activity managed by the two groups will be compared.
This festive season Amanda Davis-Baird cracked open the champagne weeks before anyone else. And there were many more hugs than usual for her two small boys. But Amanda has a lot to be extremely thankful for.
A year ago, she wasn’t sure she’d even see summer, let alone Christmas. The young mother-of-two had received the shocking news that she had pancreatic cancer— one of the most aggressive types of the disease.
‘I was the last person you’d imagine beingdiagnosed with cancer,’ says Amanda, 40, of Glen Parva, Leicestershire.‘I was then 39, and at 5ft 9in a healthy 9 st. I never smoked, only had the odd glass of wine and exercised every day.’
Counting the years: Looks can be deceiving - take this test
No matter how young you feel, your face will give you away— that’s according to a recent survey which found the average woman looked four years older than her actual age.
But what about your body? How old— or young— is it compared with your years?
And what are the implications for your health?
To help you find out, we asked leading experts to help us put together this unique test.
Start by writing down your current age and then add or subtract the years suggested according to your answers.
Keep a running total and the final score will reveal your true age— then discover what you can do to reverse it.
Boys are on a faster track to puberty reaching the milestone an average year earlier than their fathers' generation, a study has found.
A study in Bulgaria found boys today start to develop at 12 years old, while those in the 1970s began changing when they were aged 13.
The findings suggest that trends towards earlier puberty aren't limited to girls, who have already been shown to be developing sexually at increasingly younger ages.
When Janet Holmessuddenly started feeling dizzy, sweaty and had headaches, she just put it down to flu. The former mayor of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, also had a terrible pain just below her shoulder blades.
But because she’d just been walking with her husband on a bitter December morning— it was minus 3c— she assumed this was down to the cold.‘So I took two aspirins and went to bed with a hot water bottle to try to warm up.’
But when she got up the next morning, Janet felt a crushing pain in her chest which went through to her back.
Your head is full of important organs and structures, so problems around it can be worrying.
Luckily, most are harmless and will go away by themselves, but some can indicate serious conditions.
Three years ago, at the age of 61, former Pan's People dancer Babs Powell awoke with an unusual feeling of stiffness in her hips and strange flu-like symptoms.
For a woman who only six years before had sailed around the world and was just about to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, this was not an ailment she anticipated.
A teenager has realised her dream of becoming a model - just three years after a horrific car crash left her with a broken back.
Marita Davies, 19, was in a wheelchair for a year and had to learn to walk after she suffered terrible injuries as a passenger in car driven by a drunk driver.
The vehicle crashed into a lamp-post, which crushed her leg and broke her back on New Year's Eve in 2007.
Scientists found pregnant women who lived near major roads had a far higher risk of giving birth to a preterm baby compared to those residing in quieter areas
Women living near busy major roads are more likely to give birth prematurely, a study has found.
Study author Dr Takashi Yorifuji said air pollution and the noise from the traffic could be to blame although it was too early to make definite links.
The team from the Okayama Graduate School of Medicine studied more than 14,000 babies born between 1997 and 2008 in Shizuoka, about 94 miles west of Tokyo.
They obtained detailed records on each pregnancy and how close to major roads the mothers lived.
They found 15 per cent of women living within 650ft a major road gavebirth before 37 weeks, compared to 10 per cent of those living furtheraway. A normal pregnancy is 40 weeks.
Other factors have been tied to preterm birth as well, such as age,job, and smoking. But even after accounting for those, the researchteam found a 50 per cent increase in preterm births among women livingnext to highly trafficked thoroughfares.
These women also had a higher risk of delivering before 32 and 28weeks. Very premature births carry an especially heavy public healthburden.
'Air pollution is considered to be a potentially important risk factor of preterm births,' Dr Yorifuji said.
'We found a higher risk in housewives than outside workers, and housewives would probably spend more time at home during their pregnancy, and reflect more accurate exposure,' he added.
Women living close to busy roads also had about double the risk of both high blood pressure and early rupture of the membranes surrounding the foetus, both potential causes of prematurity.
The findings seem to support previous studies linking air pollution to high blood pressure and inflammation, which could lead to premature rupture of the membranes.
'Everybody always worries that it's not really living by busy roadways, but that it's other things that makes these mothers different,' said Beate Ritz of the University of California, Los Angeles, who reviewed the study, published in the journal Epidemiology.
'But after all the adjustments, the effect was still there,' she said.
So what should a pregnant woman do if she lives near a motorway?
Dr Yorifuji recommended that a pregnant woman who can't avoid living near a major road might want to reduce the time she is active outside, along with cutting out smoking and improving her diet.
A diet rich in oily fish could hold the key to preventing blindness among thousands of the elderly, research has found.
The omega-3 group of fatty acids, found in oily fish such as salmon, mackerel and fresh tuna, may help protect against the most common form of sight loss among older people, it suggests.
Scientists studying the diets of adults over the age of 65 found those who regularly ate seafood were far less likely to develop age-related macular degeneration, which is caused by the death of cells in the retina.
Cure: The crippling pain of migraines could be solved using a gel
Rubbing anti-inflammatory gel on to your gums could prove to be an effective new treatment for migraine, which affects one in eight Britons.
The gel, which is based on a drug already used to treat painful joints and back pain, is being prescribed to patients in twoclinical trials to analyse its benefits for preventing and treating migraines.
Previous research has suggested it may be effective at preventing migraines when used once a day for three months. It is thought the gel interferes with pain signals as they travel along a key nerve, which has branches that run through the gums.
Around 17 per cent of migrainesufferers have more than 40 attacks a year. Symptoms are an intense, throbbing headache, often on one side of the head only, and can also include nausea and vomiting, and increased sensitivity to light, noise and smell.
In migraine with aura, sufferers experience visualsymptoms, including blind spots, flashing lights or zigzag patterns.
An attack can last anywhere between four hours and three days, and patients can feel drained for several days afterwards.
Attacks can be triggered by a variety of factors, from flashing light to certain foods.
Though it’s not understood exactly how migraines aretriggered, it is thought to be associated with changes in blood flow, due to narrowing of the blood vessels.
Once this has occurred, it is believed the trigeminal nerve, the major sensory nerve in the head and face,transmits migraine pain signals. Scientists think that interfering with the signal transmission could block the sensations of pain.
In the trials, doctors are using a gel based on ketoprofen, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID).
The drug blocks theproduction of prostaglandins— compounds that are involved in producing inflammation and pain. The rub-on gel is already used to treat sprains and osteo-arthritis. In the migraine trials, a swab loaded with the gel is pressed on to the patient’s gum and held in place above two back molars for two minutes.
Researchers are studying its effectiveness in preventing and treating migraine attacks.
In the prevention trial, which starts this month, the gel will be given once a day to 100 people with a history of four or more migraines a month.
They will be asked to record how often they have an attack, and how much medication they use.
In the treatment trial, patients will rub on the gel when an attack begins, and can repeat thetreatment 20 minutes later.
‘The research with ketoprofen, which is given via the gums, is interesting,’ says Dr Andrew Dowson, head of headache services at KingsCollege Hospital, London.
‘NSAIDs are excellent anti-inflammatories and painkillers. This is a novel delivery method that avoids taking tablets.
‘It’s much more attractive for patients suffering from nausea who risk vomiting before atablet has been absorbed.’
Taking a combination ofstatins and vitamin D may help to combat migraine attacks.
Researchers in Boston, U.S., are giving sufferers of so-calledepisodic migraine— where patients suffer from fewer than 14 headache days a month— a daily combination of the vitamin and statins, which are used to treat high cholesterol.
Nearly 100 people are involved in the nine-month clinical trial at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre.
Scientists believe the drugs could have a beneficial effect on migraine because statins have an anti-inflammatory effect, having been shown in aseparate study at Oregon University, U.S., to reduce the inflammation in brain cells caused by migraine.
Vitamin D also has an anti-inflammatory effect, and research at the Ryan Wheeler Headache Treatment Centre, in the U.S., has shown that 41 per cent of people who suffer from migraines had low levels of this vitamin.
Taking a combination of statins and vitamin D may help to combat migraine attacks. Researchers in Boston, U.S., are giving sufferers of so-called episodic migraine— where patients suffer from fewer than 14 headache days a month— a daily combination of the vitamin and statins, which are used to treat high cholesterol.
Nearly 100 people are involved in the nine-month clinical trial at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre.
Scientists believe the drugs could have a beneficial effect on migraine because statins have an anti-inflammatory effect, having been shown in a separate study at Oregon University, U.S., to reduce the inflammation in brain cells caused by migraine.
Vitamin D also has an anti-inflammatory effect, and research at the Ryan Wheeler Headache Treatment Centre, in the U.S., has shown that 41 per cent of people who
suffer from migraines had low levels of this vitamin.
Pensioners are three times more likely to die of skin cancer compared to 30 years ago, figures show.
One in five of the over-65s is now being diagnosed with malignant melanoma - the deadliest form of the disease.
Experts are blaming the popularity of cheap package holidays to countries such as Spain, Portugal and Greece which boomed in the 1970s and when the pensioners of today were in their 20s and 30s.
The headache came from nowhere. It seized the back of my head and pulsed with a pain I had never previously experienced.
I writhed in bed or paced around in an effort to escape it ... to no avail.
It was June this year. I had been avidly watching the World Cup and the England v Germany match was coming up - but with this pain in my head I didn't care about football any more.
Lucky to be alive: The kind of aneurysm Matthew experienced can kill instantly
Sleep offered some relief but when I woke in the morning, I felt like someone had been pounding the back of my head.
I promptly made an emergency appointment with my GP, thinking he would diagnose a migraine. But I was wrong. 'It's probably a thunderclap headache,' he said - an excruciating pain that comes suddenly but disappears - but as a precaution he sent me to my local hospital, Southend General, for a brain scan.
When I walked into the hospital I had no idea that I wouldn't be walking out again for three weeks - and that when I did I would be barely able to speak.
Waiting in A&E, I tried not to move because if I did a searing pain would shoot across my head. At last I was scanned and it revealed what was described as a 'tiny bleed on the brain'. I was admitted immediately.
After a two-day wait, I was moved to the neurosurgery unit in Queen's Hospital, Romford. At Southend, in a general ward, there had been an ever-present murmur of voices.
Now I was in a bay of six beds for people awaiting brain or spine surgery. Needless to say there was little chit-chat.
My diagnosis was a subarachnoid haemorrhage or aneurysm, a bleed over the surface of the brain, which is a type of stroke. It can kill instantly.
A vein delivering oxygen to the brain had torn open. The cause was an abnormal knot of blood vessels in another part of my brain, called an arteriovenous malformation - or AVM.
For anyone born with an AVM, one day the bomb can just go off. At 40 I was precisely the right age for such an explosion.
A high-powered laser, which unblocks arteries in minutes, is being used on UK patients for the first time.
The Turbo Elite 'drill' fitted to a new laser called the Excimer blasts tissue into particles so small they can only be seen under a microscope.
Trials at University College Hospital in London have proved a major success with reduced operating times and hospital stays.
The first two patients were treated at the hospital in July and discharged the next day, instead of spending weeks in hospital. The procedure could help thousands with artery disease.
Carole Middleton is an avid follower of the Dukan diet
Kate Middleton's mother's strict diet based on cottage cheese and prawnshas been branded a 'health hazard' by French scientists.
Carole Middleton is slimming down for the Royal wedding on meagre rations of meat, fish and cheese using the popular Dukan diet.
She has said the high-protein based meals which ban most carbohydrates had helped her lose 4lbs in just four days.
But a top French medical body has now revealed the diet could lead to 'serious nutritional imbalances' with too much salt and a lack of fibre and vitamin C.
There was an increased risk of cancer and heart disease, and also a significant chance Prince William's future mother-in-law could put all the lost weight back on as soon as she quits the diet, according to a report by French food and occupational health agency Anses.
Chief researcher Dr Jean-Michel Lecerf said: 'Diets like Atkins in the US and Dukan in France are particularly unbalanced.
'The Dukan diet is associated with an increased risk of cancer and heart disease, even if this has not yet been proved in tests.
'The only diet that is fairly well balanced is the Weight Watchers diet.' Dukan dieters follow an intial 'attack' phase where they eat only low-fat protein, followed by the 'cruise' phase of protein and low calorie vegetables.
Next come the 'consolidation' and 'stabilisation' phases where fruit and bread are introduced.
Fat children are showing signs of heart disease at the age of 15, researchers warn.
A study has revealed that being overweight throughout adolescence sows the seeds of ill-health for decades to come.
It is the first to investigate the link between body mass index (BMI), waist size and fat mass of pre-teen children and subsequent heart risk factors in late adolescence.
Christy Turlington is using her fame to promote maternal health
Settling back into plump pillows to feed her newborn baby, with actor husband Edward Burns at her side, supermodel Christy Turlington was in a state of elation after the birth of her first child, Grace.
She had delivered naturally, without even the need of pain relief.
Everything had gone according to plan - or so she thought.
In fact, Christy was quickly developing a life-threatening complication that affects one in 20 British women.
The placenta had become embedded into her uterus wall, causing her to bleed heavily, and this potential tragedy, which happened to Christy seven years ago in a New York birthing centre, effectively reshaped the rest of her life.
Thanks to swift medical intervention, she survived, but many women are not so fortunate. About 1,000 deaths worldwide each day are attributed to bleeding after birth, also known as postpartum haemorrhage (PPH).
Realising just how lucky she was to have narrowly missed becoming a maternal mortality statistic, Christy - who has been the face of Calvin Klein, Maybelline and Versace - immersed herself in humanitarian issues, campaigning to get the best care for pregnant women in poverty-stricken circumstances who do not have the quality of care she received.
'I had a perfect pregnancy with Grace,' says Christy, 41. 'Your first child is unknown territory. You don't know how your body will deal with what's going on, so I was very careful to look after myself.
'But I was lucky because everything was straightforward. I had some cravings, mainly for avocados and lemonade. I cannot remember how much weight I put on but it was not too much or too little, and I was lucky enough not to suffer any morning sickness. I thoroughly enjoyed the pregnancy.
'Ed and I agreed that we wanted to have our baby in a birthing centre attached to St Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital near our home in New York City.
'We talked to the obstetrician there who would be with us in the event of an emergency. After giving us a tour of the centre, he said,"Don't worry - you'll most likely never see me again."Famous last words.'
Christy had considered having a water birth but the birthing centre did not offer this because of possible hygiene problems. The couple were told that if they were set on this type of birth, they would have to hire a birthing pool at home. They decided against it which, as it turned out, was just as well.
The baby was due on October 8, 2003, four months after Christy and Ed, 42, were married. But the baby did not arrive on time.
A quarter of girls surveyed said their mother's were on a constant diet. These teenagers were twice as likely to be trying to slim than their peers
Teenage girls are more than twice as likely to diet if their mother is constantly watching her weight, research shows.
A survey poll of 13- to 19-year-olds paints a worrying picture of the pressure young girls are under to stay thin.
Comments from parents, attitudes of friends and pictures of size zero celebrities have pushed 15 per cent of teenage girls to diet regularly.
But this figure is more than double among those whose mothers worry about their own weight, the poll suggests. It found that 35 per cent of teenage girls whose mothers flitted from one diet to another go on themselves to see cutting calories as a way of life.
Mothers’ attitudes to celebrity shapes also have an influence, with girls being more likely to fret about their waistline if they hear admiring comments about slim stars.
Of the 2,500 girls surveyed, 93 per cent said they were worried about their weight– and more than three-quarters said their friends go on diets. More than half said their families comment on what they eat, while a quarter said they have a friend with an eating disorder.
Experts warn that excessive concern about weight from a young age can raise the risk of anorexia, and extreme weight loss can interfere with puberty.
Katharine Hill, of charity Care for the Family, said:‘Children’s values are more often caught than taught– it’s what parents do as much as what they say that’s important. Healthy attitudes to food and body shape begin in the home.’
Tam Fry, of the Child Growth Foundation, said pressure to fit in and impress boys makes teenage girls extra conscious of weight.
‘It is inappropriate for children to diet,’ he said.‘Parents should draw as little attention as possible to weight but still make sure their daughters eat healthily.
‘Girls put on weight because of the biological consequences of puberty. But they should let nature take its course because 99 per cent will slim down in the end.’
Annabel Brog, editor of teen magazine Sugar, which commissioned the poll, said:‘Mums want the best for our daughters, but we live in a world preoccupied with body size, and inevitably daughters are picking up on, and assimilating, anxieties their mums have.’
An extreme example was revealed last month, when it emerged eight-year-old Corleigh Gilardoni was put on a near-starvation diet at the age of two by her 17st mother.
Aly Gilardoni, 36, from Ipswich, said she didn’t want the youngster making the same mistakes she had. But doctors warned Corleigh was at risk of stunted growth, delayed puberty and vitamin deficiencies.
Nicole Wilson survived meningitis, but as a result she has lost both legs, most of her fingers and the sight in one eye
Teenager Nicole Wilson was on a summer holiday with a friend when, one morning, she suddenly developed quite inexplicable symptoms.
Within half an hour the otherwise healthy 16-year-old was overwhelmed by severenausea and dizziness.
‘I felt completely wiped out, like I wasrecovering from a virus,’ recalls the student from Sutton, Cambridgeshire.
A few hours later, she started experiencing intense shooting pains in her ankle; became breathless and disorientated, and hertemperature shot up.
Nicole, who was staying with her friend’sfamily, was put in a cold bath to cool her down,‘but I was just getting worse’, she says.
Worried, the family called an ambulance. By the time it arrived, Nicole had started vomiting and was suffering from severe diarrhoea,stomach spasms as well as excruciating pain in her legs; one side of her face was also paralysed.
No one knew what was the matter with her— least of all the doctor who examined her in the hospital in Cyprus, where she was on holiday.
In fact, Nicole was displaying classicsymptoms of meningitis, a potentially fatal condition.
Nicole survived— just— but, as a result of the disease, the once active teenager who loved gymnastics and dancing has lost both legs, most of her fingers, and the sight in one eye. She has also been left infertile.
Meningitis is a disease most commonlyassociated with very young children.
Yet what many people don’t realise is that school children and students, aged 14 to 24, are also at high risk, with a case a day diagnosed in this group.
However, more than 10 per cent of students have never even heard of the disease, while half don’t know if they’ve been vaccinated against it, according to a recent study by the charityMeningitis Research Foundation.
Meningitis is an inflammation of the lining around the brain and spinal cord, and can be caused by a virus or bacteria.
However,bacterial meningitis is particularly dangerous, as this can develop into septicaemia, or blood poisoning, as the meningococcal bacteria sweep through the blood system, attacking the immune system and potentially causing organ failure.
As your body struggles to deliver enoughoxygen to all parts of the body, supply is reduced to hands and feet and the surface of the skin in order to maintain circulation to vital organs. In addition, the lungs also have to work harder. This explains the common septicaemia symptoms of pale skin, cold hands and feet, rapid breathing andunconsciousness.
Gustavo Palacios was sequencing the genes from a new strain of Ebola virus found in a bat in Spain— a worrisome development, since the fatal virus has almost never been found outside Africa.
Nick Bexfield of theUniversity of Cambridgehad flown from England with a newhepatitisvirus that has just broken out in British dogs.
Some researchers were examining New Yorkflu, others Africancolds. The blood of patients with mysterious, nameless fevers was waiting to be analyzed. There was dried African bush meat seized by customs inspectors atKennedy Airport. Horse viruses, clam viruses: all told, members of Dr. Lipkin’s team were working on 139 different virus projects. It was, in other words, a fairly typical day.
“We get 10,000 samples a year easily,” Dr. Lipkin said.“We’ve discovered at least 400 new viruses since I came to Columbia in 2002, and the process is accelerating.”
Over the past 20 years, Dr. Lipkin has built a reputation as a master virus hunter. He has developed ways to quickly identify familiar viruses and ways to search for new ones.
“If scientists are lucky, they’ll identify one novel virus in their whole life,” said Dr.Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.“Lipkin really stands out from the crowd.”
The emergence ofH.I.V.in the 1980s first drove Dr. Lipkin to search for viruses. At the time, he was a neurology resident at theUniversity of California, San Francisco, and was watching many patients fall ill with AIDS. It took years for scientists to discover the virus responsible for the disease. Dr. Lipkin worried that in years to come, new viruses would claim more lives because of this lag.“I saw all this, and I said,‘We have to find new and better ways to do this,’ ” Dr. Lipkin said.
One reason that viruses can be so hard to find is that they’re so small— typically a few millionths of an inch across. Even the most powerful microscopes may not be able to reveal viruses if they’re lurking in a hiding place in the body. Sometimes scientists can detect viruses by rearing vast numbers of them in laboratories. It’s also possible to detect them by looking forantibodiesin infected people. But these methods can be slow and unreliable. Dr. Lipkin thought it might be better to find viruses in a different way. He would go fishing for their genes.
“It had never been done before, and it was an obvious thing to do,” he said.
Dr. Lipkin’s first quarry was the cause of a bizarre disorder caused borna disease.Borna diseasehad first been discovered in horses in the late 1800s; it attacks their brains and causes them to flail uncontrollably. When scientists injected filtered brain extracts into healthy animals, they could develop the disease as well. Doctors worried that it might cross over into humans and have equally devastating effects. But no one had ever found a pathogen in an animal sick with the disease.
If a virus was responsible for borna disease, Dr. Lipkin reasoned, he might be able to find its genes in an infected brain. He and his colleagues infected rats with the disease and then extracted genetic material from them. They first identified the pieces of DNA that came from the rats themselves. After they painstakingly subtracted the host genes, they were left with a small amount of genetic material present only in the sick rats.
To see if these genes came from the cause of borna disease, Dr. Lipkin transplanted them into bacteria. The bacteria used them to make proteins. If these were proteins from the source of borna disease, then infected animals might have made antibodies precisely tailored to grab onto them. In 1990, Dr. Lipkin and his colleagues reported that when they mixed borna antibodies with the proteins, they embraced each other tightly. This discovery allowed Dr. Lipkin and his colleagues to isolate the virus, which came to be known as the borna virus.
As Dr. Lipkin earned his reputation as a virus hunter, other researchers began to bring difficult cases to him. In 1999, for example, doctors noticed a cluster of cases ofencephalitisaround New York City. They shipped blood from their patients to Dr. Lipkin, who was then at theUniversity of California, Irvine. Analyzing the genetic material, he and his colleagues concluded that the encephalitis had been caused byWest Nile virus. It was the first time the virus had been identified in the Western Hemisphere. Since Dr. Lipkin made the discovery, West Nile virus has spread across the continental United States.
Dr. Lipkin’s success with West Nile virus led to an invitation to come to Columbia in 2002 and set up the Center for Infection andImmunity. He and his colleagues began developing faster, more sensitive methods to find viruses. At the time, the most sophisticated technologies for identifying viruses could only compare their genetic material to one known virus at a time. Dr. Lipkin and his colleagues developed a more powerful system, known asMassTag PCR.
The researchers prepare a cocktail of genetic material from 20 or more kinds of viruses. When they mix the DNA from a sample into this cocktail, the viral segments will bind to any matching DNA. Dr. Lipkin and his colleagues can then fish out these matching segments and shoot them through a mass spectrometer to determine their mass. From these clues, the scientists can often determine what kind of virus they’re dealing with.
MassTag PCR is relatively cheap and fast, but it can miss viruses that are scarce or especially exotic. It failed, for example, to reveal the cause of three puzzling deaths in Australia. In 2006, three women received liver and kidney transplants from the same donor. For a month after the transplant, they were in good health, but then they all suddenly developed intense fevers and died. Dr. Lipkin and his colleagues analyzed samples from their bodies, but they couldn’t find any culprits with MassTag PCR.
At the time, Dr. Lipkin and his colleagues were adapting new genome sequencing machines to virus hunting. They decided to turn the machines on this mystery.
