Evidence for wild waterfowl origin of H7N3 influenza A virus detected in captive-reared New Jersey pheasants

Assessing the Likelihood of High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza Incursion Into the Gamebird Sector in Great Britain via Designated Hatcheries

The outbreaks of High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (HPAI) in the United Kingdom in 2017 and 2021 had a substantial impact on the gamebird industry and highlighted to policymakers the importance of existing knowledge gaps for effective disease control. Despite the size of the industry, the impact of HPAI on the gamebird industry is not well-understood. To improve future disease preparedness, a veterinary risk assessment to explore the risk of HPAI incursion into the gamebird sector in Great Britain via a designated hatchery was commissioned by Scottish Government Animal Health and Welfare Division. Hatchery designation is a legal requirement for hatcheries located within disease control zones or that have business links to premises located in disease control zones to continue operating during an HPAI outbreak. Several risk pathways were identified, which involved various management procedures associated with egg production through to the delivery of day-old chicks. The overall likelihood of the HPAI virus introduction into a designated hatchery through hatching egg movement is considered to be low (high uncertainty). The overall likelihood of onward transmission of the HPAI virus into gamebird rearing sites from a designated hatchery through day-old chick movement is also considered to be low (medium uncertainty). These risk levels are based on the assumption that relevant control measures are observed, as enhanced biosecurity is one of the requirements for hatchery designation. However, high uncertainties and variabilities were identified in the level of compliance with these biosecurity measures. Factors increasing the likelihood level include management practices typical to this sector, such as having multiple egg production sites, raising birds at outdoor sites, catching birds from the wild for egg production, having various scale of satellite farms in various locations, importing eggs and day-old chicks from overseas, as well as the proximity of the game farm to the infected premise or to higher risk areas. This study offers evidence for policymakers to help develop criteria for hatchery designation and proposes important mitigation strategies for future disease outbreaks specific for the gamebird sector.

Development and application of multiplex PCR method for simultaneous detection of seven viruses in ducks

BACKGROUND

Major viruses, including duck-origin avian influenza virus, duck-origin Newcastle disease virus, novel duck parvovirus, duck hepatitis A virus, duck Tembusu virus, fowl adenovirus, and duck enteritis virus, pose great harm to ducks and cause enormous economic losses to duck industry. This study aims to establish a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (m-PCR) method for simultaneous detection of these seven viruses.

RESULTS

Specific primers were designed and synthesized according to the conserved region of seven viral gene sequences. Then, seven recombinant plasmids, as the positive controls, were reconstructed in this study. Within the study, D-optimal design was adopted to optimize PCR parameters. The optimum parameters for m-PCR were annealing temperature at 57 °C, Mg²⁺ concentration at 4 mM, Taq DNA polymerase concentration at 0.05 U/μL, and dNTP concentration at 0.32 mM. With these optimal parameters, the m-PCR method produced neither cross-reactions among these seven viruses nor nonspecific reactions with other common waterfowl pathogens. The detection limit of m-PCR for each virus was 1 × 10⁴ viral DNA copies/μL. In addition, the m-PCR method could detect a combination of several random viruses in co-infection analysis. Finally, the m-PCR method was successfully applied to clinical samples, and the detection results were consistent with uniplex PCR.

CONCLUSION

Given its rapidity, specificity, sensitivity, and convenience, the established m-PCR method is feasible for simultaneous detection of seven duck-infecting viruses and can be applied to clinical diagnosis of viral infection in ducks.

Genetic Evidence Supports Sporadic and Independent Introductions of Subtype H5 Low-Pathogenic Avian Influenza A Viruses from Wild Birds to Domestic Poultry in North America

Wild-bird origin influenza A viruses (IAVs or avian influenza) have led to sporadic outbreaks among domestic poultry in the United States and Canada, resulting in economic losses through the implementation of costly containment practices and destruction of birds. We used evolutionary analyses of virus sequence data to determine that 78 H5 low-pathogenic avian influenza viruses (LPAIVs) isolated from domestic poultry in the United States and Canada during 2001 to 2017 resulted from 18 independent virus introductions from wild birds. Within the wild-bird reservoir, the hemagglutinin gene segments of H5 LPAIVs exist primarily as two cocirculating genetic sublineages, and our findings suggest that the H5 gene segments flow within each migratory bird flyway and among adjacent flyways, with limited exchange between the nonadjacent Atlantic and Pacific Flyways. Phylogeographic analyses provided evidence that IAVs from dabbling ducks and swans/geese contributed to the emergence of viruses among domestic poultry. H5 LPAIVs isolated from commercial farm poultry (i.e., turkey) that were descended from a single introduction typically remained a single genotype, whereas those from live-bird markets sometimes led to multiple genotypes, reflecting the potential for reassortment with other IAVs circulating within live-bird markets. H5 LPAIVs introduced from wild birds to domestic poultry represent economic threats to the U.S. poultry industry, and our data suggest that such introductions have been sporadic, controlled effectively through production monitoring and a stamping-out policy, and are, therefore, unlikely to result in sustained detections in commercial poultry operations.IMPORTANCE Integration of viral genome sequencing into influenza surveillance for wild birds and domestic poultry can elucidate evolutionary pathways of economically costly poultry pathogens. Evolutionary analyses of H5 LPAIVs detected in domestic poultry in the United States and Canada during 2001 to 2017 suggest that these viruses originated from repeated introductions of IAVs from wild birds, followed by various degrees of reassortment. Reassortment was observed where biosecurity was low and where opportunities for more than one virus to circulate existed (e.g., congregations of birds from different premises, such as live-bird markets). None of the H5 lineages identified were maintained for the long term in domestic poultry, suggesting that management strategies have been effective in minimizing the impacts of virus introductions on U.S. poultry production.

Lessons learned from research and surveillance directed at highly pathogenic influenza A viruses in wild birds inhabiting North America

Following detections of highly pathogenic (HP) influenza A viruses (IAVs) in wild birds inhabiting East Asia after the turn of the millennium, the intensity of sampling of wild birds for IAVs increased throughout much of North America. The objectives for many research and surveillance efforts were directed towards detecting Eurasian origin HP IAVs and understanding the potential of such viruses to be maintained and dispersed by wild birds. In this review, we highlight five important lessons learned from research and surveillance directed at HP IAVs in wild birds inhabiting North America: (1) Wild birds may disperse IAVs between North America and adjacent regions via migration, (2) HP IAVs can be introduced to wild birds in North America, (3) HP IAVs may cross the wild bird-poultry interface in North America, (4) The probability of encountering and detecting a specific virus may be low, and (5) Population immunity of wild birds may influence HP IAV outbreaks in North America. We review empirical support derived from research and surveillance efforts for each lesson learned and, furthermore, identify implications for future surveillance efforts, biosecurity, and population health. We conclude our review by identifying five additional areas in which we think future mechanistic research relative to IAVs in wild birds in North America are likely to lead to other important lessons learned in the years ahead.