Pirbright shows bird flu mutations could increase threat to poultry, but reduce potential to infect humans
Posted: 23 July, 2020
Mutations in the H7N9 bird flu virus increase its replication rate and stability in avian cells, but reduce its preference for infecting human cells, a study from The Pirbright Institute has found. The results show that outbreaks in birds caused by strains with these mutations could pose a lower risk to human health, while remaining a significant threat to the poultry industry.
