 by ejhogbin
Human noses too cold for bird flu:
[Via BBC News | Science/Nature | World Edition]
Bird flu may not have become the threat to humans that some predicted because our noses are too cold for the virus to thrive, say UK researchers.
[More] I had not realized that there was such a difference between the temperature in our nose and our bodies. Apparently the low temperatures in the nose are very important as a first line of defense against a range of invaders, both bacterial and viral. It made me wonder if things that increase nasal temperatures, like allergies, might also have some impact on the spread of flu.
I would expect that the oral temperature (about 37 °C) is much closer to our core temperature since that is where we used to place thermometers. ANother reason not to breathe through your mouth.
Of course, the BBC does not link directly to the paper itself but here it is: Avian Influenza Virus Glycoproteins Restrict Virus Replication and Spread through Human Airway Epithelium at Temperatures of the Proximal Airways. It is Open Access so anyone can read it.
[More at A Man With A PhD]
Technorati Tags: Health 11:46:18 AM 
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