H7N9 is the most easily transmitted from person to person.

According to the South China Morning Post (Hong Kong), after conducting investigations in areas affected by avian influenza, Chinese and international experts have concluded that the H7N9 virus, which has appeared in mainland China in recent months, is the most likely type of avian influenza virus to be transmitted from person to person compared to any other known avian influenza virus.

Scientists reached this conclusion based on the fact that the H7N9 virus has caused more human infections than other avian influenza viruses in a shorter period, and that the H7N0 virus is undergoing genetic mutations that suggest it is more easily adaptable to infecting humans.

Professor Malik Peiris, Director of the Centre for Supervirus Research at the University of Hong Kong and one of the 14 experts involved in the H7N9 virus research, said: “The H7N9 virus appears to be highly contagious from poultry to humans, which suggests it may be more easily transmitted from person to person.”

This finding was announced after a joint team of scientists from the World Health Organization (WHO), China, and international influenza experts conducted a week-long study in Beijing and Shanghai last April.

Between February and May, there were 132 cases of human infection with the H7N9 avian influenza virus, a much higher rate than the number of human infections with the H5N1 avian influenza virus. To date, no cases of human-to-human transmission of H7N9 or H5N1 have been detected, but the H7N9 virus has undergone genetic mutations allowing it to reside in human cells. This is something the H5N1 virus cannot do. Professor Peiris stated that another avian influenza virus, H9N2, has some similar mutations, but this virus rarely infects humans.

The report by the aforementioned group of scientists recommends continued monitoring of people and poultry in all provinces and cities of mainland China to identify any signs that the H7N9 virus is spreading geographically, making it easier for human-to-human transmission to occur.

The H7N9 virus appears to have weakened recently, with no new infections detected in the past month. Professor Peiris says that human intervention and seasonal characteristics likely played a role in containing this dangerous virus.

Experts say that avian influenza viruses are less active in warm weather, but they become stronger when temperatures drop. Professor Peiris said: “What many of us believe is that the H7N9 virus will not disappear completely in poultry. It could reappear in the winter.”

According to (VOV) - LC