Yep, I think this story is just a media scare. I'm not worried. It's worth
noting that the research lab put a 60 day moratorium on the viral research
due to the unfounded media fear. There is negligible risk of escape, and no
evidence this particular strain can infect humans either.
Jeremy
On 23/01/2012 8:07 PM, "Tony Keene" <> wrote:
> Personally, I would worry much more about H5N1 making the jump between
> birds and mammals in China of its own accord. It's a fairly common practise
> there to keep pigs and chickens in the same farm. Pigs are often receptive
> to avian flu, but are also close enough to us that it allows any mutation
> in pigs to have a high chance of being able to infect humans too.
> Thankfully, we have considerably better healthcare systems in place than
> were about in the 1918-19 epidemic, both in terms of containment and
> treatment. Something also worth noting is that while a high percentage of
> cases of H5N1 in people have resulted in mortality, the majority of those
> who contracted it were immune-deficient in the first place, not only making
> it easier for them to become infected, but also to succumb to it.
> As for the risible claim that 'terrorists' can use this information
> (which the US have been bandying around), they often tend to struggle in
> obtaining the level of competitive funding needed to be able to do that
> level of lab work. I'd say the US are more worried about a state player
> getting their hands on the info.
> Cheers,
>
> Tony
>
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