Avian influenza viruses usually appear in high-density poultry farms. However, they can be deadly in wild bird populations and can even infect humans With the recent outbreaks in Canada and the United States, the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) strain H5N1 is rapidly becoming a global concern The virus has caused widespread outbreaks in Asia, Africa and Europe, killing millions of poultry and wild birds.
In Science 》In an opinion article published in the magazine, Michelle wille and Ian Barr discussed the factors leading to the global outbreak of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus, the consequences of this transmission, and what measures can be taken to curb it.
"The ongoing wave of H5N1 avian influenza in 2021-2022 has unprecedented rapid transmission and extremely high outbreak frequency in poultry and wild birds, and is a continuing potential threat to mankind," the authors wrote
Since 2020, highly pathogenic avian influenza virus has been spreading all over the world. Although the virus often appears in high-density poultry production systems, they can also infect wild migratory birds. A special strain, H5N1, is the culprit of the latest wave of infection and has been found throughout Eurasia, Africa and North America.
The virus can be deadly in bird populations and has caused large-scale deaths in wild birds, threatening the entire population, especially those that are on the verge of extinction. More importantly, the virus has had a substantial impact on poultry production. In 2020 and 2021 alone, about 15 million poultry were slaughtered or killed due to highly pathogenic avian influenza virus infection.
Perhaps the most worrying is the ability of the virus to infect humans. Although bird to human infections have been rare in the past 20 years and the continuous human to human transmission has yet to be recorded, the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus poses a potential pandemic risk.
At present, the further adaptability of this virus can improve its ability to spread effectively among humans. In order to avoid this situation, wille and Barr believe that the international health and agriculture organization needs to take every outbreak of avian influenza seriously, especially when it involves humans.
Among other measures, they called for continued investment in monitoring wild birds and poultry and humans at the human animal interface. They pointed out that in order to prevent the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus from spilling into wild birds, some measures have been put forward, such as reducing the size and density of birds and avoiding raising poultry in areas rich in waterfowl.