Novel influenza virus H1N1 – what can we expect?

Predictions can be and frequently are wrong but what do we know about this new virus and can we try to guess the outcomes? H1N1 a new virus based on a reassortment of genes from earlier viruses, with 5 pig genes, 2 avian and a single human gene – hence its colloquial name, which I won’t use. It is highly contagious, so is easily spread from man to man. It appears to be low pathogenicity, as the symptoms are not very severe and mortality to date is quite low, mainly people with previous