Did a Lab Accident Trigger the 1977 H1N1 Influenza Pandemic?

The COVID pandemic has altered the priorities of many nations in the world. After the spread of coronavirus, most countries have devoted considerable resources towards preventing such pandemics. Experts support the efforts but are concerned because of world authorities' history in dealing with pandemics. In the 1970s, leaders worldwide in an attempt to stop the spread of the  H1N1 swine influenza virus allegedly released another completely distinct pandemic in the world, Science Alert reported. Researchers later figured out that the H1N1 influenza strain could have been transmitted to civilians due to lax protocols. Scientists believe that a similar situation could occur in modern times.

Death of US Army Pvt. David Lewis 

U.S. Army Pvt. David Lewis breathed his last on 5 February 1976, while out on a hike with his unit from Fort Dix, Science Alert reported. Autopsy results indicated that the man was positive for H1N1 swine influenza virus. Fort Dix was immediately put under virus surveillance which led to the detection of 13 positive cases that needed to be hospitalized, including 200 mild ones who were not hospitalized. The U.S. government was worried by the outcome as they feared a repeat of the 1918 H1N1 swine flu pandemic that killed an estimated 50 million people worldwide. 

Actions to Stop Virus Spread

U.S. President Gerald Ford revealed the government's plan to inoculate every man, woman, and child in the United States on 24th March of the same year, Science Alert reported. Seven months later, mass immunization campaigns were rolled out. Authorities at the same time kept an eye on Fort Dix and noted that the outbreak had fizzled out in the area with no new cases reported after February.  Army Col. Frank Top the head of Fort Dix virus investigation stated, "We had shown pretty clearly that (the virus) didn't go anywhere but Fort Dix … it disappeared." The outbreak also concerned other countries like Russia and China, whose authorities also launched similar efforts to prevent the H1N1 swine influenza pandemic.

Pandemic That Never Came

The H1N1 swine influenza pandemic that the governments were afraid of taking over the world by storm never came, Science Alert reported. In a surprising turn of events, the protections put in place for swine influenza allegedly became the reason for a pandemic caused by a different strain of the same virus. This human H1N1 influenza strain was first detected in November 1977. It was located in Moscow by Russian health officials. By the end of November, the virus strain was reported across the entire U.S.S.R, and soon throughout the world.

H1N1 Influenza Pandemic

The H1N1 influenza pandemic was distinct from other similar pandemics in many ways, Science Alert reported. The mortality rate was low compared to other pandemics and victims were mostly those, who were younger than 26. In 1977, the two flu strains – the new H1N1 and the long-standing H3N2 – spread side by side. Microbiologist, Peter Palese, with the help of a novel technique called RNA oligonucleotide mapping, analyzed the genetic makeup of the H1N1 Russian flu virus. The results indicated that the H1N1 influenza virus was identical to the older human influenza virus strain that had become extinct in the early 1950s. In 2010, a team of scientists studied several samples of the 1977 virus and concluded that the human influenza strain originated in or near Tientsin, China, in the spring of 1976. This timing was close to the death of Pvt. Lewis from H1N1 swine flu.

Release of the Virus

Palese believes that the human influenza strain was a result of vaccine trials in the Far East. He pointed out two possibilities for the release of human influenza virus strain from the location. The first one was that scientists somehow resurrected the H1N1 virus and used it in their vaccine trials. If the virus in the vaccine was not weakened then it could have been transmitted from person to person and led to a pandemic. The second one was that researchers used the live, resurrected virus to test the immunity provided by the vaccines and it escaped the settings. The background behind the H1N1 influenza pandemic indicates that authorities need to work with utmost care as they navigate new threats like avian flu viruses, mpox viruses, and others.