Nepal: H1N9 (?) in poultry

[Shiloh]

Source: http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=58957

Growing threat

REPUBLICA
Bird flu in Kathmandu
As reports of the increasing menace of bird flu continue to make rounds, all efforts at the moment are concentrated on controlling bird flu at poultry farms. Little attention has been paid to other aspects of this potential epidemic...

...Also, farmers whose chickens are dying from H1N9, a lesser known strain of bird flu, have complained of government negligence. Culling only chickens with H5N1, the government has left chickens infected with H1N9 alone. This could prove to be a fatal mistake since it is an equally dangerous strain of bird flu. Meanwhile, the government?s emergency team faces resistance from farmers who would rather sell their chicken at half the price than allow them to be destroyed. Culling chickens means a huge loss to them as the government barely pays them a fraction of the chicken?s market value. The paltry compensation for culled chicken does seem to imply that the government is not taking the issue seriously. Both the parties should realize here that unless this threat is contained, there might be huge price to pay for everyone. They too would be endangered if bird flu spread to humans. Once it spreads, bird flu is hard to track and remove. The government needs to tighten its watch over infected birds, and expand the ban to municipalities bordering the capital. Perhaps a complete ban on the import of chickens would be helpful until the threat is neutralized. Farmers may lose their business and consumers their favorite dish for some time, but considering the grave consequences of inaction, it is a price well worth paying.



Published on 2013-08-05 01:15:09

 

[alert]

Re: Nepal: H1N9 in poultry

Re: Nepal: H1N9 in poultry

H1N9? I almost think that has to be some kind of typo. They say that the virus is killing the chickens, but an avian H1 would have to be low path (since only H5 and H7 viruses can be high-path). And I can't imagine rural Nepal would test for something as unusual as H1N9.

Do they mean H7N9? If so, that's news since that virus has not been reported outside China.

Or do they mean H1N1 (as in the 2009 virus). That has previously been detected in birds worldwide as a consequence of the pandemic.

Or (even less likely) did those two viruses reassort to form a novel H1N9 virus?

A clue might also be provided by the text elsewhere in the article:

No wonder, birds in almost all poultry farms in Bhaktapur are infected with H5N1, H5N7, or H1N9, different strains of bird flu. Even though government officials claim no human has been infected, there is no way to be sure of that without carrying out definitive tests.

 

[Giuseppe]

Re: Nepal: H1N9 (?) in poultry

I've this abstract from 2012 about reassortants with H1N9:



[Source: PLoS ONE, full text: (LINK). Abstract, edited.]

Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza Isolates from Wild Birds Replicate and Transmit via Contact in Ferrets without Prior Adaptation

by Elizabeth A. Driskell, Jennifer A. Pickens, Jennifer Humberd-Smith, James T. Gordy, Konrad C. Bradley, David A. Steinhauer, Roy D. Berghaus, David E. Stallknecht, Elizabeth W. Howerth, Stephen Mark Tompkins


Direct transmission of avian influenza viruses to mammals has become an increasingly investigated topic during the past decade; however, isolates that have been primarily investigated are typically ones originating from human or poultry outbreaks. Currently there is minimal comparative information on the behavior of the innumerable viruses that exist in the natural wild bird host. We have previously demonstrated the capacity of numerous North American avian influenza viruses isolated from wild birds to infect and induce lesions in the respiratory tract of mice. In this study, two isolates from shorebirds that were previously examined in mice (H1N9 and H6N1 subtypes) are further examined through experimental inoculations in the ferret with analysis of viral shedding, histopathology, and antigen localization via immunohistochemistry to elucidate pathogenicity and transmission of these viruses. Using sequence analysis and glycan binding analysis, we show that these avian viruses have the typical avian influenza binding pattern, with affinity for cell glycoproteins/glycolipids having terminal sialic acid (SA) residues with α 2,3 linkage [Neu5Ac(α2,3)Gal]. Despite the lack of α2,6 linked SA binding, these AIVs productively infected both the upper and lower respiratory tract of ferrets, resulting in nasal viral shedding and pulmonary lesions with minimal morbidity. Moreover, we show that one of the viruses is able to transmit to ferrets via direct contact, despite its binding affinity for α 2,3 linked SA residues. These results demonstrate that avian influenza viruses, which are endemic in aquatic birds, can potentially infect humans and other mammals without adaptation. Finally this work highlights the need for additional study of the wild bird subset of influenza viruses in regard to surveillance, transmission, and potential for reassortment, as they have zoonotic potential.
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