Bird flu is terrifying. Although avian influenza only rarely infects people, when it does, it kills half or more of them.
For the past 25 years, the number one avian influenza threat has been highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza. Like other influenza A viruses, it gets its name from the two important components of the virus – the hemagglutinin, or H designation, and the neuraminidase, or N.
Less important than the name is what the virus has been doing. Tens of millions of birds around the world have been infected, from poultry to wild migrating birds, and H5N1 is making friends with other viruses.
These virus "friendships" help the germs evolve. And the new versions of H5N1 are popping up in unexpected places. It was recently detected in Antarctica. It’s also infecting new animals, including sea lions, foxes, and otters.
Dr. Vijaykrishna Dhanasekaran, Associate Professor in the School of Public Health at Hong Kong University and head of the university’s Pathogen Evolution Lab, has been studying the startling changes in H5N1.
In this episode of One World, One Health, he chats with host Maggie Fox about his team’s most recent findings and what they mean for global efforts to control H5N1 bird flu.