Host susceptibility to severe influenza A virus infection.

ABSTRACT: Most people exposed to a new flu virus do not notice any symptoms. A small minority develops critical illness. Some of this extremely broad variation in susceptibility is explained by the size of the initial inoculum or the influenza exposure history of the individual; some is explained by generic host factors, such as frailty, that decrease resilience following any systemic insult. Some demographic factors (pregnancy, obesity, and advanced age) appear to confer a more specific susceptibility to severe illness following infection with influenza viruses. As with other infectious diseases, a substantial component of susceptibility is determined by host genetics. Several genetic susceptibility variants have now been reported with varying levels of evidence. Susceptible hosts may have impaired

SUBMITTER: Clohisey S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6729070 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature