As COVID-19 spreads, researchers track an influenza virus nervousl

SARS-CoV-2 wasn’t the first coronavirus that spawned fears of a pandemic; there were worries about SARS and MERS before it arrived. But influenza viruses have also been a regular source of worries, as they can often spread from agricultural animals to us. Now a report was released that described an influenza virus with what the researchers who identified it called “pandemic potential.” The virus is currently jumping from agricultural animals to us, but it is not currently able to spread between humans. Under surveillance The institutions that some of these researchers are affiliated with—the Key Laboratory of Animal Epidemiology and Zoonosis, the Chinese National Influenza Center, and the Center for Influenza Research and Early-Warning—provide some indication of how seriously China has been taking the risk of the newly evolved influenza strain. For seven years, these centers supported the researchers as they did something that makes whatever you did for your thesis research seem...