Death-rate row blurs mutant flu debate
Abstract
When the US National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity called for redaction of two papers on mutant strains of H5N1 avian influenza virus, one reason it cited was the high fatality rate of the wild virus . But some virologists claim that the mortality rate — 59% in officially confirmed cases (see go.nature.com/3ys4py ) — has been vastly overestimated. In an opinion article published last month, Peter Palese and Taia Wang, virologists at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New...