Scientists identifies new re-assorted influenza virus with pandemic potential
- Posted By
10Pointer
- Categories
Science & Technology
- Published
7th Jul, 2020
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- Scientists have identified a new re-assorted influenza virus from pigs in China that has pandemic potential.
- The virus has shown ‘increased human infectivity’ in swine industry workers.
- The serological exercise showed that the new gene of the H1N1 virus has efficient infectivity and transmissibility in ferret models.
- The viruses fell into six different genotypes, with the G4 strain becoming predominant since 2016.
- They found that the G4 strain is a blend of three lineages-
- one similar to those found in European and Asian birds
- one linked to the 2009 H1N1 pandemic virus
- a North American H1N1 triple-reasserting virus that has genes from avian, human, and swine sources
- The virus, which the researchers call G4 EA H1N1, can grow and multiply in the cells that line the human airways.
- Tests also showed that any immunity human’s gain from exposure to seasonal flu does not provide protection from G4.
- It possesses "all the essential hallmarks of being highly adapted to infect humans"
