Madison will soon be home to a $9 million research institute dedicated to influenza viruses such as the one that causes avian flu, which public health officials fear could spark a global pandemic that would kill millions.
Gov. Jim Doyle plans to officially announce today that the Institute for Influenza Viral Research will be built in the University Research Park, on the far west side of Madison.
He is expected to make the announcement during a summit in Madison on pandemic flu preparedness. The meeting will include presentations by Alex Azar II, deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Yoshihiro Kawaoka, a world-renowned flu researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is expected to play a pivotal role in the new institute. He was in Japan on Tuesday and could not be reached for comment.