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JOSÉ ANTONIO CABEZAS FERNÁNDEZ DEL CAMPO AN. R. ACAD. NAC. FARM.

mentioned, probably because it has been very limited. However, from
this date, when the description of a new modality of influenza was
initially reported in Mexico and immediately after in United States
of America, its propagation in many other countries on several
continents has been very rapid, in spite of certain international
measures taken for to prevent its diffusion. [On March 28, 2009,
13.398 confirmed cases in 48 countries, with 95 deaths, were
reported; and on June, 3, there were more than 17.000 patients in 64
countries, 180 in Spain, near the pandemic alert (phase 6)]. Although
this virus now shows low virulence (similar to that of the seasonal
influenza virus) there is well founded fear about its possible evolution
giving rise to more dangerous strains, either by mutation or by
genetic reassortment with the influenza A/H1N1 virus responsible
for seasonal influenza or with the influenza A/H5N1 virus typical of
avian influenza.

Fortunately, some of the measures that have been taken in recent
years for the prevention or fight against the expected and feared
pandemics that could arise from the abovementioned A/H5N1 avian
virus have proved to be very useful now. Thus, the antiviral drugs
oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza), which are inhibitors
of the viral enzyme neuraminidase (= sialidase), are very effective
agents against A/H1N1 virus of swine origin. However, the risk of
appearance of resistant strains (as is the case for some A/HIN1 of
seasonal influenza) advises cautious dispensation. Furthermore,
vaccine production (probably with live attenuated virus), using
similar techniques to those employed for conventional vaccines
(although faster), is the modality recently recommended by the
WHO, with no detriment to the manufacture of the seasonal vaccine.
The use of more sophisticated procedures (cell culture, recombinant
vaccines, etc.) has been discarded for the time being.

On the other hand, the use of agents such as statins, which act
as regulators in disorders occasionally produced by certain cytokines
in some influenza cases, is generally considered as a possible
complementary (or even replacement) therapy in possible pandemics,
owing to their low cost and easy stocking. Likewise, it may be very
useful in the future to have availab1e agents that act on viral
components such as non structural NSl protein or on the viral matrix
protein M2. Finally, the use of appropriate antibodies against certain

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