The virus in the 2011 movie Contagion ‑ about a rapidly
spreading, highly lethal virus and the panic that ensues ‑ is
based partly on the H5N1 bird flu virus. Scientists have lauded
Contagion for its scientific accuracy in showing how a highly
lethal respiratory virus pandemic might play out. But the
movie’s tag line is also worth keeping in mind: “Nothing spreads
like fear.” Another round of alarming news has brought the real
H5N1 back into the headlines in recent weeks. Experimental
findings that it only takes a few mutations for the virus to
become highly contagious via human-to-human transmission were
deemed so dangerous that publication of the experimental details
has been delayed, and there is currently a voluntary moratorium
on H5N1 research. But a study published today suggests that H5N1
infections are already more frequent, but milder, than the
current WHO data indicates. The WHO’s official count as of Feb.
22, 2012: There have been 586 humans infected with the H5N1
virus since 2003; 346, or 59 perce