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Influenza Virus

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Influenza virus is a RNA virus of the family Orthomyxoviridae and is responsible for the infectious disease influenza (or most commonly referred to as flu) in birds, various mammals (such as pigs) and humans. Typically, influenza is characterized by fever, sore throat, chills and other non-specific symptoms and although it can be mistaken for common cold, it is a much more severe disease. It is spread around the world in seasonal epidemics and according to World Health Organization, these annual epidemics result in about three to five million cases of severe illness, and about 250 000 to 500 000 deaths.

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