As the virus jumped from person to person, about half the time it had a mutation in it, which caused one of the proteins in the virus to be slightly different.
If the mis-pairing stands, it creates a mutation the next time it is copied.
Her company is allowed to test for mutations that cause the skin disease, but if it discovers a mutation for hearing loss, it cannot tell the doctor.
But it is not yet clear whether it is a mutation of an existing virus or an infection in animals that has made the jump to humans.
But the sequence of her virus, released last week by the authorities in Hong Kong showed that it had a mutation, known as H274Y on the neuraminidase gene, making it resistant to Tamiflu, a neuraminidase inhibitor.
Possibilities include: 1) it was a mutation that arose independently in early embryonic development of the 2006 Alabama BSE case, 2) it was a mutation that arose independently in a gamete of one of its parents, 3) it was a mutation that arose recently in a line of cattle whose descendants include the Alabama BSE case, or 4) it was an allele present in a population or breed not tested.
It's a mutation Goodman has been eager to incubate.
From my vantage point, it's a mutation".
"Maybe it's a mutation, or he's, like, a reverse albino," Jonas says.
Because the inserted DNA could be modified in advance, say, by disabling it with a mutation, scientists could change specific genes at will.
