FiB 40: Virus Reborn

Leading virologist Peter Palese explains why he revived a virus that killed 50 million people. Our guest is Peter Palese, professor and chair of microbiology at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. In the winter of 1918-19, fifty million people died horrible deaths from the Spanish flu. The threat of this happening again today is ever so present. And while we have drugs that are fairly effective against influenza, they are not foolproof. The possible devastation to humanity from this threat is extremely significant. The world will look to the best and brightest scientists and clinicians in hopes that they know and understand the virus well enough to fight it. Dr. Palese has made great contributions to our understanding of influenza, and his scientific endeavors have given us the knowledge and tools to prevent this potential devastation. Hosts: Marc Pelletier and Vincent Racaniello, Ph.D Guest: Peter Palese Thanks to Phil Pelletier and Will Hall for the great themes. Thanks to CacheFly for providing the bandwidth for this netcast.