1. Re-emergence of H5N8 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus in wild birds, China
- Author
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Yuhai Bi, George F. Gao, Yanan Cui, Samantha Lycett, Yongchun Yang, Jian Cao, Houhui Song, Xiaodu Wang, Chunge Zhang, Lu Lu, Weifeng Shi, Juan Li, Hong Zhou, Xue Yao, Hui Dong, and Wenjun Liu
- Subjects
China ,migratory birds ,Letter ,Epidemiology ,Immunology ,re-emergence ,Zoology ,Animals, Wild ,Biology ,Microbiology ,Communicable Diseases, Emerging ,Poultry ,Disease Outbreaks ,Birds ,H5N8 ,Virology ,Drug Discovery ,Animals ,Influenza A Virus, H5N8 Subtype ,Phylogeny ,Poultry Diseases ,Phylogenetic tree ,clade 2.3.4.4b ,virus diseases ,General Medicine ,biology.organism_classification ,Infectious Diseases ,Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) ,Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Virus ,Whooper swan ,Influenza in Birds ,Parasitology ,Reassortant Viruses - Abstract
In mid-November 2020, deaths of whooper swan were reported in the Yellow River Reservoir Area, China. In the present study, we describe the genetic characterizations and phylogenetic relationships of four clade 2.3.4.4b H5N8 highly avian influenza viruses (HPAIVs) identified from a sick whooper swan and environmental samples collected in the Yellow River Reservoir Area in late November 2020. They were closely related to recent H5Nx HPAIVs causing outbreaks in Eurasia in the 2020-2021 influenza season, suggesting these isolates might be imported into China via migratory birds. The newly identified H5N8 HPAIVs possessed Q226 and G228 (H3 numbering), indicating that they prefer to avian-like receptors. However, they had three mutations falling within known antigenic regions, including T144A in antigenic region A, T192I in antigenic region B, and N240D in antigenic region D. Our study highlights the risk of the rapid global spread of H5N8 HPAIVs and the necessity for continuous monitoring of avian influenza viruses in wild birds.
- Published
- 2021
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