For the first time in history, the influenza virus gene can finally be detected directly in its original RNA form.

The latest technology allows the flu virus to be sequenced for the first time in the form of its original RNA. The genetic code of the influenza virus, like other viruses, is stored in RNA, so if you want to measure its gene sequence, it can only be obtained by sequencing the reverse-transcribed DNA under the previous limited technology. However, this new invention uses nanopore sequencing technology to directly read out its RNA sequence as it passes through a tiny molecular pump.

For the first time in history, the influenza virus gene can finally be detected directly in its original RNA form.

“This is the first time in history that we can look at the original form of the gene,” says microbiologist John Barnes of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta. Barnes led the study and published a pre-release of the paper on BioRxiv on April 12. He said: "This will bring a lot of possibilities for subsequent research."

Barnes and his team are most interested in studying the genes of viruses. Other studies involve RNA in various tissues and organs, as well as RNA in humans. Researchers have long wanted to elucidate their role in cellular function by measuring molecular modifications on RNA, but it has been difficult to conduct such experiments.

“The biggest breakthrough this invention will bring is the ability to discover RNA modifications that are transformative,” said Ewan Birney, co-director of the European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI).

What is an influenza virus?

What is an influenza virus?

What is an influenza virus?

Virus introduction
Influenza virus, a representative species of Orthomyxoviridae, referred to as influenza virus, including human influenza virus and animal influenza virus, human influenza virus is divided into A (A), B (B), C ( C) Type III is the causative agent of influenza (flu). Among them, the antigenicity of influenza A virus is prone to mutation, causing a worldwide pandemic many times. For example, in the 1918-1919 pandemic, at least 20 million to 40 million people worldwide died of influenza; influenza B virus is also more pathogenic to humans, but people have not found that influenza B virus has caused worldwide A pandemic; influenza C virus causes only insignificant or mild upper respiratory tract infections in humans and rarely causes epidemics. Influenza A virus was successfully isolated in 1933, influenza B virus was acquired in 1940, and influenza C virus was not successfully separated until 1949.
Influenza classification