| Research Abstract |
1.We found that the amino acid No.226 in the hemagglutinin (HA) of a part of the influenza viruses isolated from quail and chicken in Hong Kong (1999), which is responsible for the recognition of the host cell receptor sialosugar chains, has been changed from bird type to human type. These indicate that the direct transmission, without the intermediate host, pig, of the quail and chicken influenza viruses transmitted from wild duck to human will be possible if the receptor binding specificity of the bird virus is changed to human type the substitution of the amino acid 226 in the HA from bird type to human type by the evolutional selection of the receptor sialo sugar chains.
2.We found a new ganglioside which binds every influenza viruses isolated from the hosy, sucu as human, bird, pig and horset, indicating that this ganglioside may be a common receptor for the influenza viruses of human and other animals.
3.The neuraminidase subtype of the human virus at the Hong Kong Flu (A/1968, H3N2) has a properties of the bird flu (stable in acidic pH). It was found that the N2 subtypes of the H3N2 human influenza viruses isolated after 1971 is not a leneage of the Hong Kong Flu N2.
4.Several new inhibitors for the influenza virus HA such as polymer carrying sialyllactosamine, cyclic peptide conncted with sialyllactose which binds receptor binding pocket in the HA, glyceroglycolipids isoated from bacteria etc. were found and isolated in this study.
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