In Search of Staria

Can this weird old man, with his absurd claims and his plant fixation, really offer any answers? Why are four strangers prepared to follow him on a long trek in search of a plant called Staria? How did he save a dying woman with just a simple flower? What's so odd about his DNA? Why is a huge company spending millions trying to catch him? Why is he so convinced that nature is about to purge the world with a bird flu pandemic?
Is he really able to produce a cure?
What if he can't?
What if he won't?