Next pandemic likely to be caused by flu virus, scientists warn

Health 17:01 20.04.2024

Influenza is the pathogen most likely to trigger a new pandemic in the near future, according to leading scientists, Ednews reports via The Guardian.

An international survey, to be published next weekend, will reveal that 57% of senior disease experts now think that a strain of flu virus will be the cause of the next global outbreak of deadly infectious illness.

The belief that influenza is the world’s greatest pandemic threat is based on long-term research showing it is constantly evolving and mutating, said Cologne University’s Jon Salmanton-García, who carried out the study.

“Each winter influenza appears,” he said. “You could describe these outbreaks as little pandemics. They are more or less controlled because the different strains that cause them are not virulent enough – but that will not necessarily be the case for ever.”

Details of the survey – which involved inputs from a total of 187 senior scientists – will be revealed at European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) congress in Barcelona next weekend.

The next most likely cause of a pandemic, after influenza, is likely to be a virus – dubbed Disease X – that is still unknown to science, according to 21% of the experts who took part in the study. They believe the next pandemic will be caused by an as-yet-to-be-identified micro-organism that will appear out of the blue, just as the Sars-CoV-2 virus, the cause of Covid-19, did, when it started to infect humans in 2019.

Indeed, some scientists still believe Sars-CoV-2 remains a threat, with 15% of the scientists surveyed in the study rating it their most likely cause of a pandemic in the near future.

Other deadly micro-organisms – such as Lassa, Nipah, Ebola and Zika viruses – were rated as serious global threats by only 1% to 2% of respondents. “Influenza remained – by a very large degree, the number one threat in terms of its pandemic potential in the eyes of a large majority of world scientists,” added Salmanton-García.

Last week, the World Health Organization raised fears about the alarming spread of the H5N1 strain of influenza that is causing millions of cases of avian flu across the globe. This outbreak began in 2020 and has led to the deaths or killing of tens of millions of poultry and has also wiped out millions of wild birds.

Most recently, the virus has spread to mammal species, including domestic cattle which are now infected in 12 states in the US, further increasing fears about the risks to humans. The more mammalian species the virus infects, the more opportunities it has to evolve into a strain that is dangerous to humans, Daniel Goldhill, of the Royal Veterinary College in Hatfield, told the journal Nature last week.

The appearance of the H5N1 virus in cattle was a surprise, added virologist Ed Hutchinson, of Glasgow University. “Pigs can get avian flu but until recently cattle did not. They were infected with their own strains of the disease. So the appearance of H5N1 in cows was a shock.

IEPF organized a discussion at COP29 on the role of NGOs in combating the climate crisis

News line

BRI, threats, tariffs and Trump
09:03 04.12.2024
COP29: GLOBAL CALL TO ERADICATE LANDMINES IN AZERBAIJAN AND WORLDWIDE
17:56 18.11.2024
As Trump looms large, can Keir Starmer save the world? Analytics
12:49 17.11.2024
IEPF Holds Side Event at COP29
16:40 15.11.2024
Chief of NGO Branch, Office of Intergovernmental Support and Coordination for SDG, DESA, United Nations visited IEPF
18:08 14.11.2024
Can Trump reconcile Israel and Iran? Analytics
09:11 14.11.2024
IEPF organized a discussion at COP29 on the role of NGOs in combating the climate crisis
18:19 11.11.2024
Why Kamala Harris lost: A flawed candidate or doomed campaign? Analytics
14:32 07.11.2024
What Trump's win means for Ukraine, Middle East and China
09:56 07.11.2024
"Give us back our gods" "Inside Nepal's Museum of Stolen Art"
10:52 06.11.2024
Side Event on Mine Issues Held at UN Geneva Office
17:07 01.11.2024
A lost Maya city has been discovered deep within the jungles of Mexico
13:06 31.10.2024
"How Does Artificial Intelligence Affect Jobs?" Research
12:47 31.10.2024
"Is Europe Ready for Climate Change?"
10:26 31.10.2024
Orban and Tusk: How Did the “Two Brothers” Become Enemies?
15:02 29.10.2024
Why China needs BRICS
13:30 28.10.2024
More than 120 killed and dozens injured after Tropical Storm Trami batters Philippines
10:57 28.10.2024
Lithuania's Parliamentary Elections Conclude - Social Democrats Come to Power
10:27 28.10.2024
Pyrrhic Victory: Japan's ruling party has lost its parliamentary majority
10:03 28.10.2024
Astronauts Have Returned
09:15 28.10.2024
Does Israel Want Ceasfire? Important Messages from the Israeli Defense Minister and President
09:10 28.10.2024
Iran's Leaders Respond to Israel's Attack - "We do not want war, but... "
09:05 28.10.2024
Terrorist attack in Ankara: A message for Erdogan?
09:00 28.10.2024
Entire northern Gaza population at risk of dying – UN
08:45 28.10.2024
The Commonwealth members demand compensation from the United Kingdom
17:31 27.10.2024
Tigers vs tribals: Why are thousands of villagers up in arms against endangered species?
11:00 27.10.2024
Russia wants the world divided and in conflict NATO cannot let this happen
13:11 26.10.2024
Source of "Marburg" Strain Found: Bats Again..
17:35 25.10.2024
The Confirmed Ineffectiveness of the European Parliament – An Apt Sumerian Proverb for Them
15:17 25.10.2024
"If military assistance to the parties is not halted..." Human Rights Watch Director
12:38 25.10.2024
Today is Qubadli City Day
10:18 25.10.2024
8 things to know about Georgia’s ‘existential’ election
18:11 24.10.2024
The Digital Transport Map for COP29 has been launched
15:19 24.10.2024
"They wants to put a puppet government in our place" The Hungarian prime minister
11:53 24.10.2024
"Armenia, by deporting Azerbaijanis from Western Azerbaijan, has committed a crime against humanity"
11:45 24.10.2024
"In the past two years, 172 people affected by landmines have received support"
11:20 24.10.2024
NATO Responds to Turkiye's Interest in Joining BRICS
10:14 24.10.2024
The end of the British Empire
16:27 23.10.2024
Muxtar Babayev has discussed the preparations for COP29 with representatives of the Commonwealth of Nations
14:03 23.10.2024
Has the war in Ukraine affected Armenia’s strategic position? Vlad Olteanu writes...
13:11 23.10.2024
Hamısı