Study Warns of Potential Human Pandemic Risk from Mutating H5N1 Bird Flu Virus

Researchers find minimal genetic changes in the virus could enable easier human transmission, with cases already emerging in the US and Canada.

A new study reveals that minor mutations in the H5N1 bird flu virus could allow it to bind more effectively to human cells, increasing the risk of human-to-human transmission.
The virus, which has spread to hundreds of dairy herds in the US, has already infected dozens of people, though no sustained human transmission has been observed so far.
Lab experiments identified specific amino acid changes in the virus's binding proteins that could give it pandemic potential, similar to past influenza pandemics like H1N1 in 2009.
A teenager in Canada recently became severely ill with an H5N1 strain carrying one of the concerning mutations, though no further human infections were linked to this case.
Experts emphasize the need for enhanced surveillance, containment of outbreaks in livestock, and protection for workers in affected industries to mitigate the risk of further mutations.