Controversal Paper on Avian Flu is Published by Nature

Nature

Highly pathogenic avian H5N1 influenza A viruses occasionally infect humans, but currently do not transmit efficiently among humans. The viral haemagglutinin (HA) protein is a known host-range determinant as it mediates virus binding to host-specific cellular receptors1, 2, 3. Here we assess the molecular changes in HA that would allow a virus possessing subtype H5 HA to be transmissible among mammals. We identified a reassortant H5 HA/H1N1 virus—comprising H5 HA (from an H5N1 virus) with four mutations and the remaining seven gene segments from a 2009 pandemic H1N1 virus—that was capable of droplet transmission in a ferret model. The transmissible H5 reassortant virus preferentially recognized human-type receptors, replicated efficiently in ferrets, caused lung lesions and weight loss, but was not highly pathogenic and did not cause mortality. These results indicate that H5 HA can convert to an HA that supports efficient viral transmission in mammals

Sorry for the long, technical quote. It seems the researchers have let this genie out of its bottle. This is the first of two purported papers by separate teams.

I tried to present this to the community two weeks ago, with little success. If you dig deeper into it, you will find that there may just be a rabbit hole.

Here’s my thread.

Government sponsored viral mutations, attempted suppression, and the Congressman who cared.

And kudos to you for trying to get it out there again.

Whether or not the H5N1 viruses currently circulating in the world can easily acquire the additional mutations needed to cause a pandemic is an open question, according to Kawaoka: "It is hard to predict. The additional mutations may emerge as the virus continues to circulate."

After Epic Debate, Avian Flu Research Sees Light of Day

www.sciencedaily.com...

The debate for releasing this information has been going on for a while, because of the information contained could be used by 'terrorists', for it contained sensitive information in regards to particular methodologies that could be used to mutate the virus.

In December 2011, a National Institutes of Health advisory panel, the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB), recommended redacting critical information from the Kawaoka lab's report, as well as from a similar study conducted in Holland. The unprecedented request was to withhold the methodologies used to make the virus transmissible and to not identify the mutations needed to make the virus transmissible in mammals. This month, the NSABB reversed itself, citing new information and manuscript revisions that more explicitly state the public health rationale for the work as well as the safety and security precautions in place in the labs in Wisconsin and Holland.

I remember when I first read about this.. I had mixed emotions as to if I agree with them suppressing the information or not. Now that the geenie is out of the bottle, we'll just have to wait and see what comes of it.