CNN —The avian flu virus isolated from a hospitalized teenager in Vancouver has mutations in key areas that could help the virus spread more easily in humans, scientists say. But scientists say the genetic changes are a reminder of what the virus is capable of if it continues to spread. The H5N1 bird flu virus that infected the teen, who is in critical but stable condition, is not the same strain that is transmitting in dairy cattle in the United States. The three mutations are at positions in the virus’ genome that Bloom and other scientists have determined would allow it to attach more easily to human cells. Most of the human H5N1 infections reported in the United States have had red, inflamed eyes as an early symptom, suggesting that’s where the virus entered the body.

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Persons: ” Dr, Bonnie Henry, we’ve, ”, Jesse Bloom, “ It’s, Scott Hensley, immunologist, Hensley, Bloom, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, ” Bloom Organizations: CNN, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, University of Pennsylvania, CNN Health Locations: Vancouver, British Columbia, United States, Pacific Northwest, ARDS, Canadian, Washington