H1N1 unlikely to mutate into “superbug”

Julie Steenhuysen
Reuters
September 1, 2001

The new H1N1 virus appears to outcompete seasonal flu, making it less likely to mix with other circulating flu viruses into a “superbug” as some had feared, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.

The H1N1, or swine flu, virus also spreads more quickly and causes more severe disease in animal studies, the team said, but it shows no signs of mixing with either of the two seasonal flu viruses to form a new, so-called reassortant virus.

“The results suggest that 2009 H1N1 influenza may outcompete seasonal flu virus strains and may be more communicable as well,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.

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