Immunity to many types of flu viruses boosted by seasonal flu vaccines

Seasonal flu vaccines may protect individuals not only against the strains of flu they contain but also against many additional types, according to a study published this week in mBio®, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology. The work, directed by researchers at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., found that some study participants who reported receiving flu vaccines had a strong immune response not only against the seasonal H3N2 flu strain from 2010, when blood samples were collected for analysis, but also against flu subtypes never included in any vaccine formulation.

The finding is exciting "because it suggests that the seasonal flu vaccine boosts antibody responses and may provide some measure of protection against a new pandemic strain that could emerge from the avian population," said senior study author Paul G. Thomas, PhD, an Associate Member in the Department of Immunology at St. Jude. "There might be a broader extent of reactions than we expected in the normal human population to some of these rare viral variants."

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Could a hug a day keep infection at bay?

When feeling down, a hug from a friend or a loved one can really lift those spirits. But a new study finds hugging may do more than make us feel better emotionally; it could help protect against viruses, such as the common cold.

Hugging was found to play a role in protecting study participants against a common cold virus, while more frequent hugging was linked to lower severity of symptoms.

Lead author Sheldon Cohen and colleagues, of the Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA, found that frequent hugging - alongside good social support - may lower stress-induced susceptibility to infection, preventing or reducing the risk of illness.

The study - published in the journal Psychological Science - stemmed from the idea that hugging provides social support, as it represents having a close relationship with another person.

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