Vird flu is adapting to new mammalian hosts, raising the possibility of the virus spreading between humans --experts .

Will bird flu spark a human pandemic? Scientists say the risk is rising Nature - H5N1 is adapting to new mammalian hosts, raising the possibility of the virus spreading between humans. Kozlov, Max nature

Although many of the infections have been mild, emerging data indicate that variants of the avian influenza virus H5N1 that are spreading in North America can cause severe disease and death, especially when passed directly to humans from birds. The virus is also adapting to new hosts — cows and other mammals — raising the risk that it could spark a human pandemic.

“The risk has increased as we’ve gone on — especially in the last couple of months, with the report of [some] severe infections,” says Seema Lakdawala, an influenza virologist at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia.

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