An avian influenza experiment found that the virus is not easily transmitted through the air among ferrets, but it does have some capability of spreading this way.
The bird flu strain found in cows in the United States is not easily transmitted through the air among ferrets, a new study shows, although the scientist who led the work said it had shown some ability to spread this way. Ferrets are considered to be the best small mammal for studying influenza virus infection and transmission, and are often used to inform assessments of the public health risk of emerging viruses.
None of the four healthy ferrets exposed in this way became ill, and no virus was recovered from them during the study. However, one of the ferrets had produced antibodies to the virus, the researchers later found, suggesting it had been infected. 'It is good news that the virus does not have extensive transmissibility between ferrets through the air, but it is concerning that it has the ability to transmit ,' said study author and flu virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka.
It also spread through the body to muscles and mammary glands in infected mice, as it appears to do in cows. Angela Rasmussen, a virologist at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada, said it was a relief to see the virus had not yet acquired the capability to cause a human pandemic, but this did not mean it would never do so, particularly if the spread among cows goes unchecked. 'It's always better to stop a pandemic before it starts than to respond to it once it has started.
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