Chinese scientists warn another virus could cause a pandemic

Chinese scientists Weifeng Shi and George Gao, affiliated with a number of Chinese scientific institutions, believe that the H5N8 strain of avian influenza virus could lead to another pandemic, according to a publication on the health portal. Medical Xpress.

Chinese researchers said that the H5N8 virus has a high pathogenicity.

The new strain of influenza virus was first detected in a duck in China in 2010 . By 2014, epidemics broke out in Japan and Korea in both domestic and wild birds; By 2016, there were outbreaks of bird diseases in India, Russia, Mongolia, the United States and parts of Europe.

"In 2020, outbreaks were observed in 46 countries. Shi and Gao note this shows that the virus can spread very quickly . Even more alarming is the report of cross-contamination in China. 7 Russian agricultural workers last December," the article said.

According to Chinese scientists, the infected workers have no symptoms and there is no indication that the virus is being transmitted from person to person.

"But they (scientists) show that once infected, it usually doesn't take long for the virus to adapt to other victims," the information said.

The researchers also note that H5N8 is highly pathogenic, but careful monitoring of farms, markets and wild birds, along with standard infection control measures, can slow its spread. of viruses.