Sputnik V, the creator of the Russian COVID-19 mRNA vaccine, claims that the public should be warned of a “cat flu” pandemic. Russia’s top virologist says the spread of H5N1 bird flu among felines could spark a deadly outbreak in human beings.

Alexander Gintsburg, the head of Gamaleya Research Institute in Russia, has warned that H5N1 avian flu spreads among cats and could jump to humans, potentially triggering a deadly pandemic. Gintsburg said the threat is serious enough to warrant immediate vaccine development.

“[A vaccine prototype] should go through Phase I and II clinical trials against the strain that is very likely to start transmitting not just between animals, but from human to human,” Gintsburg told Izvestia on Wednesday.

Earlier this year, the United States announced that it would prioritize poultry vaccines and start stockpiling them to prevent avian influenza during the outbreak. However, recent news has said bird flu infections are waning, and there has not been a U.S. human case in over three months. Scientists have questioned the reason for the lack of human cases.

BIRD FLU: The U.S. Will Build A NEW Stockpile Of Vaccines For Poultry

Gintsburg claims that a single mutation of H5N1 allowing airborne human transmission could lead to a crisis worse than smallpox. He added that Russia should be able to manufacture a vaccine quickly, just in case this occurs. “The fatality rate is 50–70%, and if transmitted by air, smallpox will seem like child’s play compared to what could happen after one or two mutations,” he said. “A ready prototype should be available to scale up production in three to four weeks and introduce it for public use,” he added. However, he noted that no such program currently exists.

With domestic cats increasingly being infected with avian influenza, Gintsburg sees that as a pathway to human transmission. “Domestic cats are susceptible to [bird flu] and provide a potential pathway for zoonotic spillover to humans,” the researchers warned, stressing the risks to people in close contact with animals during outbreaks, he said, according to a report by RT.