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#Surveillance of Highly Pathogenic Avian #Influenza Virus in Wild #Canids from #Pennsylvania, #USA

By G.M.
Abstract The avian influenza virus is a global pathogen with significant health and economic implications. While primarily a pathogen of wild and domestic birds , recent outbreaks of the H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) clade 2.3.4.4b have caused mortality in a wide variety of mammals , including members of the Canidae family , on multiple continents. Despite sporadic mortality events globally, the epidemiology and pathobiology of H5N1 HPAIV in wild canids remains poorly defined. During 2022–2024, 41 wild canid carcasses (diagnostic cases), including 23 red foxes and 18 gray foxes , were tested for the influenza A virus (IAV) via PCR, with five red fox kits testing positive (12%). Infected animals had variably severe encephalitis , pneumonia , and occasionally myocarditis associated with strong immunolabeling for IAV. Serum from 269 wild canids in Pennsylvania was tested for antibodies to IAV, including 133 samples collected prior to 2021 (pre-H5N1 HPAIV 2.3.4.4b in...
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Highly Pathogenic Avian #Influenza (HPAI) #H5N1 virus in #Finland in 2021-2023 – Genetic diversity of the viruses and infection kinetics in #human dendritic cells

By G.M.
Abstract Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 is known for its virulence and zoonotic potential, infecting birds and mammals , thus raising public health concerns. Since 2021 its spread among birds has led to cross-species transmission causing epizootics among mammals, eventually impacting fur animal farms in Finland in 2023. To analyze the infectivity of the Finnish H5N1 isolates in human cells , representatives of diverse H5N1 isolates were selected based on the genetic differences, host animal species, and the year of occurrence. The infection kinetics of the selected H5N1 isolates from wild pheasant and fox , and fur animals blue fox and white mink were examined in human monocyte-derived dendritic cells (moDCs) with H5N1 human isolate as a control. Although the isolate from pheasant (a wild bird) showed weakly reduced replication and viral protein expression in human cells compared to mammalian isolates, no discernible differences in virus replication in moDCs was observed...
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