In a press release virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka from the University of Wisconsin-Madison has shown some of the secrets of the 1918 influenza, one of the most deadly outbreaks in history. In the study, the researchers reconstructed the virus using tissues of long dead victims, and then infected monkeys with it to watch their immune system's reaction. The results of the study(and probably the study itself, based on your viewpoint of recreating deadly viruses from the past...) were quite troubling. The virus seems to put the person's immune system into overdrive, and it attacks the lungs, which fill up with fluid, essentially drowning the victim, causing rapid death. Clinical signs of infection were evident within 24 hours, and death occurs sometime around the one week mark, an incredibly rapid rate which mirrors the speed which the 1918 outbreak spread around the world, killing 20-40 million people.

Another cause for concern, as if all of that wasn't enough, is how closely the 1918 strain mirrors avian flu. As one scientist says, the 1918 version "looks more like an avian virus -- with some human characteristics." In fact, it's entirely likely that the 1918 strain was originally a bird flu which mutated and spread to humans. With all of the recent concern over bird flu, could we be in for another outbreak similar to the 1918 outbreak in the near future? Lets hope that by the time that happens we know a lot more about how to deal with it.