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Publication Abstract from PubMed

The hemagglutinin (HA) structure at 2.9 angstrom resolution, from a highly pathogenic Vietnamese H5N1 influenza virus, is more related to the 1918 and other human H1 HAs than to a 1997 duck H5 HA. Glycan microarray analysis of this Viet04 HA reveals an avian alpha2-3 sialic acid receptor binding preference. Introduction of mutations that can convert H1 serotype HAs to human alpha2-6 receptor specificity only enhanced or reduced affinity for avian-type receptors. However, mutations that can convert avian H2 and H3 HAs to human receptor specificity, when inserted onto the Viet04 H5 HA framework, permitted binding to a natural human alpha2-6 glycan, which suggests a path for this H5N1 virus to gain a foothold in the human population.

Structure and receptor specificity of the hemagglutinin from an H5N1 influenza virus.,Stevens J, Blixt O, Tumpey TM, Taubenberger JK, Paulson JC, Wilson IA Science. 2006 Apr 21;312(5772):404-10. Epub 2006 Mar 16. PMID:16543414^[1]

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.