"The data uncovered from this project will enable BC to track how the virus moved through the population - information that can assist public health officials in understanding the virus and preparing for future outbreaks," explains Dr. Perry Kendall, British Columbia's Provincial Health Officer.

Large-scale genome projects such as this have only become common in the last five years, as sequencing technologies have improved and become faster and more cost-efficient. "This is the first time since this technology has matured that both a pandemic and an Olympics have occurred together," says Dr. Alan Winter, President and CEO of Genome BC. "The timing provides a very significant opportunity to study how a virus evolves when it is meeting and mixing with viruses from around the world."

While influenza activity has declined to baseline or below baseline levels in Canada, pandemic H1N1 activity elsewhere remains variable, with some Eastern European and Western Asian countries continuing to report above-baseline activity levels.