Swine flu caused by human error
The World Health Organi-sation (WHO) is investigating a claim by a researcher who said the swine flu virus may have been created as a result of human error. Swine flu – officially called influenza A H1N1 – has infected 5,728 people and killed 61 in 33 countries.
Australian researcher Adrian Gibbs, 75, claimed the strain may have accidentally evolved in eggs scientists use to grow viruses and make vaccines. “One of the simplest explanations is that it’s a laboratory escape,” Gibbs, who collaborated on research that led to the development of the anti-flu drug Tamiflu, told Bloomberg TV. “But there are lots of others.
” He said it could be a mistake that occurred at a vaccine production facility or the virus could have jumped from a pig to another mammal or a bird before reaching humans. India is so far free of swine flu.
Over 4.55 lakh passengers travelling from affected countries to India have been screened and 46 of them tested. All of them tested negative.
Gibbs, who analysed the virus’ genetic blueprint, has sent his study to the WHO and the World Organization for Animal Health, which represents chief veterinary officers from 174 countries. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, however, has dismissed the report saying there is no evidence to support Gibbs’s conclusion.
As an expert on germ evolution, Gibbs is one of the first scientists to analyse the genetic makeup of the H1N1 virus infecting humans. His analysis found the new strain is the product of two distinct lineages of influenza found in pigs in North America and Europe for a decade.
