Mutations From Canada's First Human H5N1 Case Weakened the Virus's Grip on Cells, UBC Study Finds

Two genetic mutations that alarmed scientists after a British Columbia teenager became critically ill with H5N1 bird flu in November 2024 appear to have weakened the virus's ability to attach to human cells, not strengthened it. Researchers at the University of British Columbia reported the finding on September 28 in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Communications.The result runs against the early worry that the Canadian case, the country's first human infection reported in the province, signaled a virus adapting to people. According to the UBC Faculty of Medicine, the mutated surface protein bound poorly to both human-type and bird-type cell receptors in laboratory tests. The patient recovered.The finding is reassuring about these two specific mutations, but it does not lower overall vigilance. For readers, it matters because these viruses continue to circulate in wild birds, poultry, and U.S.