Over time the flu virus suppresses the body’s ability to defend itself against bacteria.
When infected with influenza the flu virus alters the host’s immune system and compromises its capacity to effectively fight off bacterial infections. A team of immunologists at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) and cooperation partners has discovered that an immune system molecule known as TLR7 is partly to blame. The molecule recognizes the viral genome – and then signals scavenger cells of the immune system to ingest fewer bacteria. The researchers published their findings in the Journal of Innate Immunity.
In the past, there have been flu pandemics that have claimed the lives of many and during the course of the condition; many people not only become ill from the flu itself but also from bacterial pathogens such as; pneumococci, the bacteria causing pneumonia. Why an infection with the flu virus increases the risk for super-infections is poorly understood.
http://www.proventus.org.uk/The%20Flu%20Virus.pdf
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