Facts Everyone Should Know About Bird Flu From Charlotte Professor Daniel Janies
The H5N1 virus, more commonly known as bird flu or avian influenza, was first detected nearly 146 years ago and has been causing various diseases since. This year, it has affected everything from the price of eggs, recalls on pet food and a human death in the United States. As the virus continues to adapt, other potential issues lie in wait.
Daniel Janies, UNC Charlotte’s Carol Grotnes Belk Distinguished Professor of Bioinformatics and Genomics, studies diseases like H5N1. He is an author of a recently published paper on the virus’s ability to evade human immune responses and authored another study on how H5N1 mutates to better attack human cells.
Janies lists several facts everyone should know about H5N1:
- Bird flu doesn’t affect only birds: H5N1 has infected hundreds of species of wild and domestic birds as well as mammals in North America. The virus can spread to other animals, including cows and humans.
- Vaccines Exist: There are stockpiles of H5N1 vaccines, but the virus is evolving away from their design. As the virus continues to evolve, the current vaccines will have a lower efficacy.
- Watch what you eat: The food supply is safe, yet expensive because flocks that carry H5N1 are being eradicated, and cows are either treated or eradicated. However, it is always wise to properly prepare your food (cook poultry and eggs to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F or 74 C). Do not eat unpasteurized dairy products.
- Watch what your pet eats: Several pet food companies have issued voluntary recalls due to contamination with avian influenza virus with their raw pet food products.