Bird flu spillover ‘concerning’, doctor warns – as virus in girl who died had mutations making it better adapted to humans
The bird flu virus isolated from a girl who died from the disease had mutations that made it better adapted to human cells, Sky News has learned.
The 11-year-old is believed to have been infected by poultry kept by her family in Prey Veng province, in the south of Cambodia.
Her father also tested positive for the H5N1 virus, but did not develop symptoms.
Dr Erik Karlsson, who led the team at the Pasteur Institute of Cambodia that decoded the genetic sequence of the girl’s virus, said it differed from samples taken from birds.
“There are some indications that this virus has gone through a human,” he revealed in an exclusive interview.
“Any time these viruses get into a new host they’ll have certain changes that allow them to replicate a little bit better or potentially bind to the cells in our respiratory tract a little bit better.”
Dr Erik Karlsson says ‘spillovers’ of the virus is a ‘concern’
He said the mutations were unlikely to have occurred in the girl, but probably existed in a “cloud” of viruses with random genetic changes inside birds.
“Just getting into a new host allows those one or two viruses in that cloud to survive better and become the dominant population,” he said.
But Dr Karlsson added that the virus had yet to fully adapt to humans. “It’s still a bird virus,” he said.
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The virus’s genetic material was sequenced in just 24 hours using technology developed by UK company Oxford Nanopore.
It showed the virus was the 2.3.2.1c variant of H5N1, which is endemic in wild birds and poultry in Cambodia, and not the 2.3.4.4b strain that has spread rapidly around the world and begun to infect some mammals.
But Dr Karlsson said it would be wrong to downplay the threat from the variant in Cambodia.
An 11-year-old was infected in Prey Veng, in the south of Cambodia. Pic: AP
“This was a zoonotic spillover [of a virus infecting a new species] and needs to be treated with the utmost concern,” he warned.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there have been 873 human cases of H5N1 with 458 deaths.
But so far there is no evidence that the virus spreads easily between people.
A key reason is that bird flu viruses latch on to receptors found only in cells deep in human lungs.
Widespread transmission would require a mutation that allows it to bind to a receptor found on cells in our nasal passages, as human flu viruses do.
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The cells are more vulnerable to infection by an airborne virus, but also release a cloud of infectious material with every breath.
But Dr Karlsson said the world must carefully monitor changes in the virus.
“Something may be happening here in Cambodia and something may be happening on the other side of the world in South America, but we don’t really know what could cause the problem tomorrow,” he said.
“It’s critical we all work together to respond to all of those at once. We would love to be off the hook for zoonotic disease, but it will remain a major problem.”
The UK Health Security Agency reported a human case of bird flu in January 2022, though the individual did not develop symptoms.
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Bird flu becoming an endemic
So far this winter there have been more than 3,100 exposures to the H5N1 virus in people working closely with sick birds. None of them tested positive.
Health officials are also analysing a small number of samples taken from patients with flu symptoms to check the bird virus is not spreading below the radar.
Dr Karlsson said: “It’s concerning that it’s gone global so quickly.
“In Europe, as well as North America and South America, there have been massive poultry infections and spillovers to mammals.
“Each one of those spillovers is a concern.”
World
European leaders to meet in Ukraine for ‘coalition of the willing’ talks – and issue call to Russia
Sir Keir Starmer will join other European leaders in Kyiv on Saturday for talks on the “coalition of the willing”.
The prime minister is attending the event alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, recently-elected German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
It will be the first time the leaders of the four countries will travel to Ukraine at the same time – on board a train to Kyiv – with their meeting hosted by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Follow latest updates on the Ukraine war
Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz travelling in the saloon car of a special train to Kiev. Pic: Reuters
Military officers from around 30 countries have been involved in drawing up plans for the coalition, which would provide a peacekeeping force in the event of a ceasefire being agreed between Russia and Ukraine.
Ahead of the meeting on Saturday, Sir Keir, Mr Macron, Mr Tusk and Mr Merz released a joint statement voicing support for Ukraine and calling on Russia to agree to a 30-day ceasefire.
Sir Keir and Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a meeting in March. Pic: AP
“We reiterate our backing for President Trump’s calls for a peace deal and call on Russia to stop obstructing efforts to secure an enduring peace,” they said.
“Alongside the US, we call on Russia to agree a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to create the space for talks on a just and lasting peace.”
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Putin’s Victory Day parade explained
The leaders said they were “ready to support peace talks as soon as possible”.
But they warned that they would continue to “ratchet up pressure on Russia’s war machine” until Moscow agrees to a lasting ceasefire.
“We are clear the bloodshed must end, Russia must stop its illegal invasion, and Ukraine must be able to prosper as a safe, secure and sovereign nation within its internationally recognised borders for generations to come,” their statement added.
“We will continue to increase our support for Ukraine.”
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The European leaders are set to visit the Maidan, a central square in Ukraine’s capital where flags represent those who died in the war.
They are also expected to host a virtual meeting for other leaders in the “coalition of the willing” to update them on progress towards a peacekeeping force.
This force “would help regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces after any peace deal and strengthen confidence in any future peace”, according to Number 10.
World
Ten explosions near international airport in India-administered part of Kashmir, officials say
Ten explosions have been heard near Srinagar International Airport in India-administered parts of Kashmir, officials have told Reuters news agency.
The blasts followed blackouts caused by multiple projectiles, which were seen in the sky above the city of Jammu earlier on Friday.
Explosions were also heard in the Sikh holy city of Amritsar, in the neighbouring Punjab state, according to Reuters.
An Indian military official told the agency that “drones have been sighted” and “they are being engaged”.
It comes as tensions between India and Pakistan across the line of control around the region of Kashmir have boiled over this week, leading to fears of a wider conflict.
On Wednesday morning, India carried out missile strikes in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered parts of the disputed region.
The retaliation came weeks after 26 people, mainly Indian tourists, were shot dead by gunmen in an India-administered part of Kashmir last month.
The government in India said it hit nine “terrorist infrastructure” sites, while Pakistan said it was not involved in the April attack and the sites were not militant bases.
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Explained: India-Pakistan conflict
Around 48 people have been killed since Wednesday, according to casualty estimates on both sides – which have not been independently verified.
India also suspended its top cricket tournament, the Indian Premier League, as a result of rising tensions, while the Pakistan Super League moved the remainder of its season to the United Arab Emirates.
Meanwhile, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a conference on Friday that the US is in constant contact with both India and Pakistan.
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Conclaves are famously unpredictable affairs – and once again the election of Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as the new pope caught many by surprise.
The newly elected Pope Leo XIV won the consensus of the 133 cardinal electors after only four ballots – a fast process for a diverse college of cardinals.
Though his name had circulated among some Vatican watchers, other cardinals had emerged as clear front-runners, including Pietro Parolin – the Vatican’s number two who would have been the first Italian in almost 50 years to become pontiff – or Luis Tagle, a Filipino cardinal looking to become the first Asian pope.
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What are the conclave’s secrecy measures?
Instead, it was the first North American to win the highly secretive process.
So, what went on behind the closed doors of the Sistine Chapel?
Until Thursday lunchtime, Cardinal Parolin was ahead, gathering between 45 and 55 votes, sources say.
A substantial number, but well short of the 89 votes he needed for a two-thirds majority.
At this point, Cardinal Prevost had between 34 and 44 votes.
But as the Italian struggled to grow his support during the first three rounds of voting, he stepped down from the race, endorsing Prevost instead, Sky News understands.
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Who is Pope Leo?
An internal battle between Luis Tagle and Pablo Virgilio David – both cardinals hailing from Asia – cancelled out both of their chances.
And a contender from Africa – the most conservative sector of the church – was never likely for a conclave where the overwhelming majority of cardinals had been appointed by Francis, a progressive pontiff, sources say.
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Moment new pope emerges on balcony
An American pope has long been seen as highly improbable, given the geopolitical power of the US.
But Cardinal Prevost was able to draw from across the groups making up the electors: moderate US cardinals, South American cardinals and many European cardinals all coalesced around him.
Italian newspaper La Repubblica said Prevost “certainly attracted cross-party preferences, both ideologically and geographically”.
“In the conclave he was the least American of Americans: Born in Chicago, he lived 20 years in Peru,” the newspaper said.
It added: “As a man used to teamwork, Prevost appeared to many as the right man to make the papacy evolve into a more collegial form.”
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