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Renowned Bird Flu Expert Warns: Be Prepared
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March 14, 2006 - Robert G. Webster is one of the
few bird flu experts confident enough to answer
the key question: Will the avian flu switch from
posing a terrible hazard to birds to becoming a
real threat to humans?
There are "about even odds at this time for the
virus to learn how to transmit human to human,"
he told ABC's "World News Tonight." Webster, the
Rosemary Thomas Chair at St. Jude Children's
Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., is credited
as the first scientist to find the link between
human flu and bird flu.
Webster and his team of scientists are working
to find a way to beat the virus if it morphs.
He has even been dubbed the Flu Hunter.
Right now, H5N1, a type of avian influenza
virus, has confined itself to birds. It can
be transmitted from bird to human but only
by direct contact with the droppings and
excretions of infected birds.
But viruses mutate, and the big fear among
the world's scientists is that the bird flu
virus will join the human flu virus, change
its genetic code and emerge as a new and
deadly flu that can spread through the air
from human to human.
If the virus does mutate, it does not
necessarily mean it will be as deadly to
people as it is to birds. But experts such
as Webster say they must prepare for the worst.
"I personally believe it will happen and
make personal preparations," said Webster,
who has stored a three-month supply of
food and water at his home in case of an
outbreak.
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Frightening Warning
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"Society just can't accept the idea that
50 percent of the population could die.
And I think we have to face that possibility,"
Webster said. "I'm sorry if I'm making people
a little frightened, but I feel it's my role."
Most scientists won't put it that bluntly,
but many acknowledge that Webster could be
right about the flu becoming transmissible
among humans, even though they believe the
50 percent figure could be too high.
Researcher Dr. Anne Moscona at New York Weill
Cornell Medical Center said that a human form
may not mutate this year or next - or ever -
but it would be foolish to ignore the dire
consequences if it did.
"If bird flu becomes not bird flu but mutates
into a form that can be transmitted between
humans, we could then have a spread like
wildfire across the globe," Moscona said.
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Well, the Apocalyse does have a section where 200,000,000
horsemen slay one third of the human race. 8-)
Cheers,
Cassandra
See also,
http://www.fluwikie.com/index.php?n=About.About
Jonas
