Studies Suggest Why Few Humans Catch the H5N1 Virus

摘要

This week, two research groups are independently reporting results that help explain why the H5N1 avian influenza virus is so lethal to humans but so difficult to spread. Unlike human influenza viruses, the teams report, H5N1 preferentially infects cells in the lower respiratory tract. Residing deep in the airways, the virus is not easily expelled by coughing and sneezing, the usual route of spread. The results "explain a lot of the mysteries" surrounding H5N1, says K. Y. Yuen, a virologist at the University of Hong Kong.