New Study Finds Bird Flu Strain Rarely Spreads Through Air in Ferrets

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have found that the H5N1 bird flu strain detected in cows in the United States is not easily transmitted through the air among ferrets. In the study, ferrets infected with the virus were placed near healthy ferrets without direct physical contact. No virus was recovered from the healthy animals, though one ferret did produce antibodies to the virus, indicating infection.

The study also revealed that the bird flu virus in cows can bind to human-type receptors under laboratory conditions, which are used to infect human cells. Despite this, public health agencies currently assess the risk as low, given that there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission. Further research is needed to understand the potential implications of these findings in real-world scenarios.