South San Francisco, CA, May 15, 2006 - The TOPAZ® system for protein crystallization figured prominently in structure-based research on receptor specificity of the hemagglutinin (HA) from an H5N1 avian influenza virus, commonly known as “avian flu”. The goal of this research was to identify mutations that can permit influenza A viruses to cross the species barrier and adapt to a new host. The TOPAZ system allowed researchers to efficiently identify initial leads for solving the HA structure. Continued outbreaks of the H5N1 virus in poultry and wild birds make the potential emergence of a human-adapted H5 virus a growing threat. “We are thrilled that TOPAZ played a role in this discovery, and, given the importance of the project, that results were obtained so quickly,” said Gajus Worthington, CEO of Fluidigm. The study was published in the April 21st 2006 issue of Science Magazine (see www.sciencemag.org and supporting online material). The work represents a collaboration of investigators from several US public research organizations.*
