Explain how antigenic drift requires individuals to get a flu vaccine yearly. CA

Question

Explain how antigenic drift requires individuals to get a flu vaccine yearly. CASE HISTORY Eighteen-year-old Aisha was a first-year student at a small private college in New England. In the fall of 2009, the campus implemented management procedures for the expected H1N1 influenza pandemic. Students with flu symptoms were told to "self-isolate" and to report their status on a college webform. By the end of October, there were 50 students reporting per week. One night, Aisha felt hot, flushed, and unsteady on her feet. Her thermometer showed a temperature of 39 degree C (102 degree F). She started coughing, and she felt extremely tired. She managed to find the webform on her computer, although her arm was shaking and made false starts. Finally, she typed her information and confirmed her status report. A college security officer arrived at her room wearing a face mask. The officer gave Aisha a face mask and told her to collect her essential personal items and books; Aisha did the best she could in her fevered state. The officer drove her to a separate residence reserved for suspected H1N1 cases. There Aisha lay in the bed and tried to sleep. In the morning a nurse's aide brought a tray of food and medication including oral oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and inhaled zanamivir (relenza). The tray was left on the floor in the hallway, outside Aisha's isolation room. Aisha had to drag herself out of bed to open the door and get the tray. She was required to stay in the isolation room until two days after her temperature returned to normal. She and most other infected students made a full recovery, although one student was hospitalized with life-threatening complications The college security officer who interacted with Aisha when she contracted H1N1 influenza had received a flu shot earlier in the season, before this strain was included in the vaccine. He had also previously been infected with influenza as a child. Why did this officer exercise such precaution (e g., wearing a face mask) in interacting with Aisha? How is the influenza virus able to infect a person with previous immunity?

Explanation / Answer

Antigenic drift signifies with the variation that a virus particle undergoes. It involves accumulation of various mutations in its gene that enables it to infect a partially immumne population. The mutaions allow the previous strain to infect the individual as a new strain with similar symptoms but with an elevated levels. The Antigenic drift occurs both in influenza virus strain A and B. This is evident from the case given.Tthe security officer who interacted with Aisha was however immunized with flu shot as well as had an influnza in his childhood, but then too he took the precautions which was due to the high susceptible rate of infection by the H1N1 virus which creates mutations in its gene regularly making it diffult to create a vaccine for the same. The infuenza virus is capable to infect a person with previous immunity becuse of the antigenic drift within their gene. The antibodies that the body of a previously immune person has cannot fight effectively with the new strain that envades the body. this is beacuse it is advised to get a vaccine for flu every year because the infuenza virus mutates itself with the process of antigenic drift and becomes a new strain whenever it invades a previously immunized person.

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