Scientists in Switzerland have cracked open a century-old viral mystery by decoding the genome of the 1918 influenza virus from a preserved Zurich patient. This ancient RNA revealed that the virus had ...

The preserved lung of an 18-year-old Swiss man has been used to create the full genome of the 1918 "Spanish flu," the first complete influenza A genome with a precise date from Europe. It offers new ...

Have you ever wondered why you have to get a flu shot every year, but some vaccines are one-and-done? It all has to do with how and how fast viruses evolve - and that depends on mutation rates.