China discovers new swine flu, has the potential of a pandemic.

The virus is named G4, genetically descended from the H1N1 virus that caused a pandemic in 2009. 

As per a study published on Monday, in the US Science journal PNAS, researchers in China have discovered a new kind of swine flu that is capable of triggering a pandemic. The new type of virus in pigs is genetically descended from the H1N1 virus that caused a pandemic and is called G4.

Different authors, scientists at Chinese universities, and China’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention admitted that G4 possesses “all the essential hallmarks of being highly adapted to infect humans”.

Between 2011 and 2018, researchers gathered samples from 30,000 pigs, taking their nasal swabs in slaughterhouses in 10 Chinese provinces and a veterinary hospital, permitting them to isolate 179 swine flu viruses. After thorough testing, it was observed that the majority of the new virus has been dominant among pigs since 2016.

G4 does not protect humans who gain immunity after getting seasonal flu:

G4 was tested on ferrets, which are believed to possess similar flu symptoms to that of humans, and it was revealed that the virus affected the ferrets more than any other viruses. G4 was highly infectious in ferrets, and a recent study revealed that any immunity humans gain from the exposure to seasonal flu does not safeguard them from the G4.

After blood tests were conducted on swine workers, the authorities came to know that about 10.4 percent of those workers were already infected with it. It is predicted that 4.4 percent of the general population may be infected.

The scientists’ main fear is the human transmission which is yet not proven; the researchers wrote,” It is of concern that human infection of G4 virus will further human adaptation and increase the risk of a human pandemic.”

The health authorities are currently observing more people who work around pigs.