Scientists believe the mutations may allow the virus to better bind to receptors in the upper airways of humans.

A genetic analysis of samples from the patient in Louisiana recently hospitalized with the country’s first severe case of H5N1 bird flu show the virus likely mutated in the patient to potentially become more transmissible to humans,

The CDC said that testing of a person with a severe case of bird flu indicated the virus had mutated but the risk remains low to the public as no human-to-human transmission has been documented.

A genetic analysis of the H5N1 bird flu in a Louisiana patient reveals potential mutations for human transmissibility, says the CDC.