H5N1, or the Bird Flu virus, may be closer to human transmission than previously thought. Two teams of researchers purposefully mutated the strain in a lab in order to demonstrate how easily the change might occur.
Both research teams — led by Yoshihiro Kawaoka of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Ron Fouchier of Erasmus University in the Netherlands — submitted their reports to Nature and Science, respectively.
But a federal advisory panel asked that they not be published, fearing terrorist groups might use them as a how-to guide for weaponizing H5N1.
Now, the Kawaoka-led study has been published after a fierce debate in the scientific community.
Kawaoka's study reports that bird flu in nature may be only one mutation away from becoming transmissible in mammals, adding that the mortality rate could be devastating.
"This study has significant public health benefits and contributes to our understanding of this important pathogen. By identifying mutations that facilitate transmission among mammals, those whose job it is to monitor viruses circulating in nature can look for these mutations so measures can be taken to effectively protect human health," contested Kawaoka.
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