Bird Flu Paper Publication Delayed

The World Health Organization announced today that it recommends publishing the two controversial H5N1 papers in full, as soon as a few details are worked out. And Science is listening.

Written byJef Akst

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Colorized transmission elecrton micrograph of Avain influenza A H5N1 viruses (in gold)WIKIMEDIA COMMONS, CDC

The journal Science, and possibly Nature, will delay publication of controversial research on strains of the H5N1 flu capable of transmitting aerially between ferrets, instead opting to publish the work in full after further discussions by scientists and bioethicists make clear the best way to proceed.

Science arrived at this decision after the World Health Organization recommended today (Feb 17) that the two journals publish the full details of the work. The decision was made by a group of more than 20 scientists, government officials, and an ethicists at a meeting called by WHO, and stands in stark contrast to the recommendation of the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB), which urged the journals to redact details of the methodologies and results. Nature has ...

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Meet the Author

Jef Akst
Jef (an unusual nickname for Jennifer) got her master’s degree from Indiana University in April 2009 studying the mating behavior of seahorses. After four years of diving off the Gulf Coast of Tampa and performing behavioral experiments at the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga, she left research to pursue a career in science writing. As The Scientist's managing editor, Jef edited features and oversaw the production of the TS Digest and quarterly print magazine. In 2022, her feature on uterus transplantation earned first place in the trade category of the Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism. She is a member of the National Association of Science Writers.
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