Bird flu can transmit in mammals, study finds

The results, showing an engineered flu strain can spread easily between ferrets, derive from a controversial study that stirred debate over doing research with the potential to cause harm. In a long-awaited study that helped prompt a contentious debate over the wisdom of conducting research that has the potential to help as well as harm, scientists reported Wednesday that they had engineered a mutant strain of bird flu that can spread easily between ferrets — a laboratory animal that responds to flu viruses much as people do.

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