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contexto.) (Adds authors)
Geneva/London (Reuters) – two studies revealing
of how experts mutated lethal influenza avian H5N1 into a virus
capable of creating a human pandemic are finally published,
but will remain secret for now for experts in
biosecurity to assess the risks of spreading these data, he said the
Friday who.
Speaking after a high level meeting between
flu and officials of biosafety experts Americans
in Geneva, a spokesman for the World Health Organization
(Who) reported that it reached an initial agreement to publish the
controversial work, only after that analysis
deeper risks.
“There is a preference from a public health perspective
“
completely disclose the information from these two studies.
However, there are important public concerns about
“
this research should be evaluated first”, said
Keiji Fukuda, Assistant Director-general for health security and environment
The UN environment.
Who convened the meeting to break the stalemate
among the scientists who studied the necessary mutations
that H5N1 is transmitted between mammals and the
authorities of the National Advisory Council of science of the
United States Biosecurity (NSABB, for its acronym in English),
wishing that his works were censored or “retouched” before
of be disseminated in scientific journals.
Biosafety experts fear that the mutated forms
of the virus reached independently teams in
Holland and United States can escape or fall into the hands
wrong and be used to unleash a pandemic worse to the of
Spanish flu of 1918-19, which caused the death of about 40
million people.
“Must be a fuller discussion on the
“
risks and benefits of research in this area, and the
“
risks of the virus itself”, he told journalists the spokesman of the
Who Gregory Hartl.
However, a scientist close to the NSABB spoke with
Reuters immediately after the decision said that the Committee
is “deeply frustrated” by this.
High rate of mortality
The H5N1 virus, first detected in Hong Kong in
1997, is deeply rooted among poultry in many
countries, mainly in Asia, but so far remains
difficult human transmit infected.
The virus has infected nearly 700 people around the world
since 2003 and killed half of them, a rate
much higher than that of the H1N1 flu – known mortality
as swine flu – which generated a pandemic in 2009 and the
2010.
Last year, two teams of scientists – one aimed by
Ron Fouchier at the Erasmus medical centre and one directed by
Yoshihiro Kawaoka in the University of Wisconsin, said that
discovered that a small number of mutations just so
the H5N1 virus spreads as common flu between the
mammals, maintaining its high mortality rate.
In December, the NSABB requested two journals
– Nature and Science – leaders who not to disclose details of the
research for fear that can be used by
bioterrorist.
Officials said that you one is potentially more
lethal bird flu involves one of the greatest threats
known for health human and justifies the request without
unprecedented censure investigations.
Who expressed concern and the influenza of all experts
the world declared a ceasefire on 20 January for 60 days “in
“
research involving the H5N1 influenza virus highly
“
pathogens” that allows to generate easily communicable forms.
Fouchier, who participated in the meeting of two days in the
Who ended on Friday, said that the consensus of experts
and officials was “that in the interest of public health, the
“”
full article should be published” at some future date.
“This was based on the high impact on public health of
“
this work and the need to share the details of the
studies with a very large community, for the sake of the
“
science, surveillance and public health as a whole”, said
Fouchier journalists.
In the present form, people can not contract the strain
H5N1 if they aren’t close with ducks, chickens or other contact
birds infected with the virus. The contagion now cannot
give from one person to another.
But the Dutch and American researchers
found that when H5N1 acquired mutations that allow you to
live in the upper rather than the lower respiratory tract
there is no way that can be moved by air, according to
confirmed with studies on infected ferrets.
Ferrets are considered a good animal model on
how the virus of influenza in persons behave.
Fouchier pointed out that “it was the vision of the group” in the
find that the risks of this particular virus or
flu virus can in general be used as agents
bioterrorist “would be very, very few”.
“The risks are not zero, but are very, very small”,
insisted the Dutch scientist.
