Concerns in late April that the swine flu had claimed more than 100 lives in Mexico stopped people from all walks of life, and in all areas of endeavour, in their tracks. Much as epidemics had killed victims in the millions in 1918, 1957 and 1968, this outbreak is causing the world to close off, with tourists to Mexico being urged to rethink their plans. Financially, travel and tourism operators are taking the biggest hit, as the World Health Organization raised its global alert to a phase 4 out of 6.

Even under somewhat normal circumstances, the current outbreak would be enough to shake folks around the world to their very foundations. Rearing its ugly head while financial markets worldwide are still reeling, the outbreak provides a double-whammy that might strangle the economic recovery – including that of the markets – before it even truly gets started (accordingly, many international indexes took steps backward upon word the flu had ravaged Mexico and threatened to spread elsewhere).

At times of such stress, the focus shifts to what companies and products can arrest this trend before it engulfs thousands and possibly millions. One of those firms is Connecticut-based NanoViricides, Inc. (OTC:BB: NNVC, Stock Forum), whose flagship anti-influenza candidate known as FluCide™ was being pressed into action to fight this flu before it achieved pandemic status. FluCide, the company says, has been shown to be effective against both common influenza subtype H1N1, as well as two different variants of bird flu subtype H5N1.

NanoViricides is a development stage company that is creating special purpose nanomaterials for viral therapy. Its novel nanoviricide™ class of drug candidates is designed to specifically attack enveloped virus particles and to dismantle them.

Company literature says NNVC has previously announced excellent results in both animal studies and cell culture studies against widely different influenza subtypes and strains. “If these results are confirmed in further animal and human studies,” the information piece continues, “then FluCide would likely be considered the best ever drug effective against all influenzas.”

In March, NNVC signed an agreement with a major pharmaceutical company (whose name is being kept confidential) to test one of the former’s anti-herpes drugs. If the tests prove successful, a long-term licensing agreement between the two parties could result. Tests last summer on its anti-HIV drug cocktail called HAART elicited better survival times in the animals on which it was tested.

It was last summer that the stock hit its 52-week height of $1.78, a figure that slid to 39 cents last fall on the general market downturn. Word that swine flu was strong and getting stronger sent the price sharply higher, to $1.07 a share, on April 27. It then faded to about 90 cents on word from the World Health Organization that the outbreak was not yet pandemic.