Diseases
Infectiologist: Bird flu vaccine could be developed quickly
According to experts, there is currently no reason to actively vaccinate people in Germany. (Symbolic image) Photo
© Jens Kalaene/dpa-Zentralbild/ZB
The bird flu virus is spreading in US cattle populations. According to infectious disease specialist Leif Erik Sander, there is currently no danger for people in Germany, but precautionary measures are still advisable.
In the event of a bird flu pandemic, vaccines for humans could be a viable alternative, according to the Berlin Infectiologist Leif Erik Sander said that vaccines should be available quickly. “We have vaccines that are approved and that could be adapted very quickly the moment a virus triggers a pandemic,” said the Charité professor at an online press conference. However, production capacities would have to be ramped up for this.
Sander speaks of influenza vaccines that would have to be adapted to the sub-variant of the bird flu pathogen. The bird flu virus H5N1 is an influenza A virus like the seasonal flu pathogens that circulate in humans.
No acute threat to people in Germany
According to the expert, there is currently no reason for people in Germany to worry. “At the moment there is no reason to actively vaccinate people,” said Sander, adding: “It’s not about spreading concern that a pandemic is imminent. But we should do everything we can to be prepared.”
The H5N1 virus has been circulating among birds for decades – initially in Asia, but now almost worldwide. In the USA, dozens of cattle have recently been infected. According to the US health authority CDC, a handful of people have so far been infected in the context of the outbreak in US dairy farms. According to US authorities, the infections probably occurred through direct contact with infected cows, not from person to person. According to the Robert Koch Institute, there is currently no evidence worldwide of continued human-to-human transmission of influenza viruses.
Cattle infestation worries experts
Sander said the infestation of cattle was worrying because the virus is multiplying in a large population of mammals that are used by humans. One of the biggest concerns is that the virus will continue to adapt. “If the virus spreads widely in one species, the concern is that it can adapt to other mammals or mix with other influenza viruses. That would allow it to infect humans more strongly and could then possibly be transmitted from person to person.”
Infection with highly pathogenic bird flu viruses such as H5N1 rarely occurs in humans, but is often severe. According to the expert, the mortality rate is high. “This is because these viruses can only attack the deep parts of the human lungs and can then lead to severe inflammation of the lungs.”
One of the infected people in the USA showed more typical symptoms of an acute respiratory disease such as coughing. The other affected people reported symptoms in the eyes similar to conjunctivitis. “The people probably became infected through contact infections and not through the respiratory tract as is usually the case with influenza. This could lead to the relatively mild course of the disease,” said Sander.