Despite the major threat to human health posed by these viruses, there was very little information available on the entire genomes of bird flu viruses. The St. Jude Influenza Virus Genome project provides a major contribution to our understanding of H5N1 and other bird flu viruses. Now we're in a much better position to understand what makes these viruses tick. And that could help us learn how to control the avian influenza viruses that threaten humans. Clayton Naeve