Fresh concern over bird flu mutation

Published on Monday 7 April 2008 23:01

TESTS have revealed that a father probably caught bird flu from his son – raising concerns about the ability of the virus to spread from person to person.

A report in the Lancet looked at two cases of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu contracted by a father and son in China.

The scientists found that the strain was genetically identical in both the patients, apart from a small change in genetic structure, making it likely the father caught bird flu from his son.

The finding raises fears the strain may be capable of mutating into a form which is easily spread between humans, increasing the possibility of a pandemic.

But experts said the fact that more than 90 close contacts of the men did not contract the virus meant it had not developed into a virus easily passed between people.

Professor Yu Wang, from the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, and colleagues said the 24-year-old son died from H5N1, but his 52-year-old father survived after early treatment.

The researchers said it was likely that the father contracted flu from his son, who had visited a poultry market shortly before he fell ill.

Researchers said clusters of H5N1 cases needed close attention because they "could indicate that H5N1 viruses have acquired the ability to spread more easily among people".

Ian Jones, professor of virology at the University of Reading said although the research looked worrying, its findings were good because contacts of the pair did not show signs of H5N1. "It would seem the father simply caught the avian virus breathed out by his dying son as he, in turn, had acquired it from a bird. Thus, there is no indication from this data that we are any nearer a pandemic," he said.