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  LOS ANGELES, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) — People’s immunity to A/H1N1 flu virus is greater than previously thought, a new study suggests.

    This may explain why the disease hasn’t posed more problems, according to the study conducted by researchers at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology in La Jolla, California.

Employees wearing masks sew protective masks at a factory in Ternopil, western Ukraine Nov. 3, 2009. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

    By using a major flu database funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, the researchers analyzed the reaction of immune system cells to the H1N1 virus. They found that 17 percent of the B cells that attack viruses in the bloodstream recognized H1N1 because of exposure to other flu viruses.

    ”They (B cells) produce antibodies in the bloodstream and try to find the virus before it ends up in cells, so they are what prevents the disease,” said study lead author Bjoern Peters, an assistant member of the division of vaccine discovery at the institute.

    The study also found that 69 percent of T cells, which attack the virus in infected cells, were alerted by those previous infections.

    ”They recognize the virus inside cells, so they are responsible for clearing the infection once you have it,” Peters said. “Nobody knows what level of immunity is sufficient for protection. But if infected, our data suggest that T cells in those who have previously been exposed to influenza may make the infection less severe.”

    ”What has been widely reported in the general press is that thes wine flu is totally new, so there is no immunity to it,” said Peter. “But the severity of infections that have been seen is not greater than usually seen in seasonal flu.”

A man receives an injection against the H1N1 flu disease (Schweinegrippe) in a minicipal health centre in Vienna Nov. 9, 2009.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

    The reason why the H1N1 flu virus isn’t the killer it was feared seems to be that the various protective mechanisms of the immune system have been primed by exposure to previous flu viruses, said study co-author Alessandro Sette, director of the institute’s Center for Infectious Disease.

    The research, published in this week’s Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, helps understand why the H1N1 flu pandemic is not as deadly as was originally feared, Sette said. “We provide an explanation for observations that the disease severity is not greater,” he said. “Maybe it is even less than ordinary seasonal flu.”

    The research, however, doesn’t negate advice to get vaccinated against the H1N1 virus, Peters said. “From our findings, we see that it is necessary to get a shot,” he said. “Yet it provides an explanation why you do not have to be absolutely concerned if you have not been able to get a shot yet.”

    BEIJING, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Hu Jintao said here Tuesday that he and U.S. President Barack Obama had agreed to improve Sino-U.S. relations and reached consensus on major international and regional issues of common concern.

Chinese President Hu Jintao speaks during a press conference held with visiting U.S. President Barack Obama following their official talks at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Nov. 17, 2009.

    After nearly two hours of talks, Hu told the press at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People that his talks with Obama was “candid, constructive and fruitful.”

    Standing beside Obama, Hu said China and the United States shared broad common interests and have great potential for future development on a series of major issues concerning peace and development of the mankind.

    MORE DIALOGUE

    Hu said they agreed to improve dialogue, communication and cooperation from a strategic and far-sighted perspective and to make joint efforts in building a positive, cooperative and comprehensive Sino-U.S. relationship so as to promote global peace, stability and prosperity.

Chinese President Hu Jintao holds a press conference with visiting U.S. President Barack Obama following their official talks at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Nov. 17, 2009.

    Both China and the United States believed that close high-level contacts and dialogues and consultations at various levels were of great importance to the two countries’ relationship, he said.

    The two presidents agreed to keep close communication through visits, phone calls, letters and meetings at multilateral occasions, Hu said.

    The two leaders also spoke highly of the role of the strategic and economic dialogue mechanism in boosting mutual trust and cooperation between the two countries.

    China and the United States would continue implementing the agreements reached at the first round of the dialogue last July in Washington and will start preparations as soon as possible for the second round of the Sino-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) next summer in Beijing, Hu said.

ECONOMIC COOPERATION

    The two leaders exchanged views on the current global financial situation and held that despite the positive signs of the global economic recovery, the foundation of the global economic recovery was far from solid.

    Hu and Obama agreed to strengthen dialogue and cooperation on macro-economic policies, properly handle trade frictions through negotiations and jointly ensure the bilateral economic and trade ties to develop in a healthy and steady way.

    ”I stressed to President Obama that under the current situation, our two countries should oppose and resist protectionism in all forms in an even stronger stand,” he said.

Visiting U.S. President Barack Obama reacts during a press conference held with Chinese President Hu Jintao following their official talks at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Nov. 17, 2009.

    Hu said both China and the United States appreciated the key role of the G20 summit in coping with the global financial crisis.

    ”China and the United States would work together with all other members to fully carry out the commitments of all G20 summits and continuously strengthen the role of G20 in the management of the global economy, while pushing forward international financial system reform and improving global economic order to guard against and cope with future crisis,” Hu said.

    CLIMATE CHANGE, ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT

    The two presidents also agreed to improve cooperation in climate change, energy and environment.

    Hu said China and the United States would cooperate with all sides concerned, on the basis of the “common but differentiated responsibilities” principle and their respective capabilities to help produce positive results at next month’s Copenhagen summit on climate change.

    China and the United States had signed documents of cooperation including a memorandum of understanding on enhancing cooperation on climate change, energy and the environment, and the two countries had formally launched a joint research center on clean energy, he said.

Chinese President Hu Jintao shakes hands with visiting U.S. President Barack Obama after they meet the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Nov. 17, 2009.

    Hu said the two leaders also agreed to deepen cooperation on the basis of mutual benefits in areas such as anti-terrorism, law enforcement, science and technology, space exploration, civil aviation, high-speed railway, infrastructure, agriculture and health care.

    The two leaders agreed to continue to promote greater development in military relations, Hu said.

    Obama and Hu discussed to expand cultural exchanges between the two countries, especially youth exchanges, and supported both sides to set up a cultural exchange mechanism and strengthen cooperation on dispatching exchange students.

    NUCLEAR NON-PROLIFERATION

    ”Both of us remain committed to resolving the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula through dialogue and consultation,” said Hu. “Such a commitment serves the common interests of China and the United States and all other parties concerned.”

    Hu said China and the United States would work with other parties concerned to stick to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the six-party talks process to safeguard peace and stability of the northeast Asia.

    The two presidents stressed that it was very important for the stability in the Middle East and the Gulf Region to uphold the international nuclear non-proliferation regime and properly resolve the Iran nuclear issue through dialogue and negotiation, Hu said.

    ONE-CHINA POLICY

    Hu said the key to Sino-U.S. relationship was to mutually respect and accommodate each other’s core interests and major concerns while divergences from different national conditions were normal as the two sides had different country situations.

    He said that China appreciated President Obama’s support for the one-China policy and the three Sino-U.S. joint communiques, and his respect for China’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity on the Taiwan issue and other matters.

    Hu said the two sides had reaffirmed the “cardinal principle” of “mutually respecting national sovereignty and territorial integrity” and voiced opposition to any attempt by any force to violate this principle.

    ”We have both agreed to conduct dialogues and exchanges on issues including human rights and religion, in the spirit of equality, mutual respect and non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, so as to boost understanding, mitigate divergences and broaden consensus,” Hu said.

    ”The Sino-U.S. relationship is very important. Maintaining and promoting the Sino-U.S. relationship is a shared responsibility of both sides,” Hu said.

    ”China is ready to work together with the United States to push forward the continuous, healthy and stable development of the Sino-U.S. relationship to better serve the two countries’ peoples and peoples across the world,” Hu said.