Avian flu H5N1 discussion - news/case lists links - 2022+

[sharon sanders]

Tom Peacock
@PeacockFlu
Thread of avian influenza virus (AIV). First off a PSA - DO NOT touch, handle or attempt to treat suspected sick or dead birds yourself - particularly poultry, waterfowl (ducks, geese, etc) or seabirds. These are VERY dangerous viruses that can infect people and be deadly!
8:07 AM · Oct 16, 2022·Twitter Web App
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Tom Peacock
@PeacockFlu
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3h
Replying to
@PeacockFlu
Instead if you suspect wild birds or domestric poultry might be infected either call your vet or approapriate veternary health body (for example Defra in the UK - see advice here).

rspca.org.uk
Animal Diseases - Preventing Disease Spread | RSPCA
How to help prevent the spread of animal diseases such as bird flu, Alabama Rot and Bovine TB and learn who to contact if you're concerned about an animal.
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Tom Peacock
@PeacockFlu
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3h
Similarly do not let pet dogs go near or pick up dead or suspected sick birds. We know the current strain is infecting foxes, and dogs are similarly suspectible to avian flu.

nytimes.com
Not Just for the Birds: Avian Influenza Is Also Felling Wild Mammals
As a new version of bird flu spread through North America this spring, scientists began finding the virus in red foxes, bobcats and other mammals.
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Tom Peacock
@PeacockFlu
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3h
We are entering the third year of unprecidented levels of circulation of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus in Europe - the culprit is H5N1 - similar viruses are causing the current outbreaks in North America as well

gov.uk
Avian influenza (bird flu)
How to spot avian influenza (bird flu), what to do if you suspect it, and measures to prevent it.
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Tom Peacock
@PeacockFlu
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3h
Its not entirely clear whats changed, but its suspected this is a slightly different strain from what has previously circulated, one that is particularly suited for transmitting and spreading in waterfowl and seabirds and therefore able to spillover into poultry.
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Tom Peacock
@PeacockFlu
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3h
There have also been several human infections, among poultry workers and keepers. It is higly likely as this epizootic continues there will be further cases.

republica.com
España registra el primer caso de gripe aviar H5N1 en humanos
España detecta la primera infección humana con la cepa H5N1 de gripe aviar. Se trata de un trabajador de una granja avícola de Guadalajara

 

[sharon sanders]

Also please see these FluTrackers threads/forums:
(New areas will be added to this list if outbreaks spread.)

​​​​​​​
Africa - link

Asia - link

Canada - link

Central America - link

China - including Hong Kong link

Europe - link

India - link

Middle East - link

North America - link

United States - link

 

[sharon sanders]

Human cases in 2022:

H5N1 -

US - European strain - Male, 40, poultry worker, test confirmed on April, 27, mild case. Colorado state

Spain - European strain - Male, 19, poultry worker, test confirmed September 27, mild case, Guadalajara province

Source is the FluTrackers 2016+ Global H5N1 Human Cases List link


H5N6 -

66) Female, 43, hospitalized in critical condition, Zhongkai District, Huizhou City, Guangdong Province

67) Male, 68, onset January 3, hospitalized January 4, critical condition, Langzhong, Sichuan Province

68) Female, 55, onset January 6, hospitalized January 9, critical condition, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province

69) Male, 50, onset January 12, hospitalized January 13, critical condition, Baise City, Guangxi Province

70) Male, 35, onset January 15, hospitalized January 19, critical condition, Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province

71) Male, 46, reported 28/02/2022, Fuzhou, Fujian Province Death link

72) Female, 6, reported 28/02/2022, critical condition, Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province link

73) Male, 48, reported 28/02/2022, critical condition, Chengdu, Sichuan Province link

74) Male, 35, reported 28/02/2022, critical condition, Hechi, Guangxi Province link

75) Female, 51, reported 15/03/2022, critical condition, Nanchang, Jiangxi Province link

76) Male, 28, critical condition, Puyang, Henan province

77) Female, 53, reported 09/04/2022, critical condition, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province link

78) Male, 56, reported 20/04/2022, serious condition, Deyang City, Sichuan Province link

79) Male, 49, onset April 16, hospitalized April 18, died on April 24, Baise City, Guangxi Province Death

80) Male, 58, onset June 2, hospitalized June 5, critical condition, Ganzhou, Jiangxi Province

81) Female, 6, onset July 30, hospitalized August 3, serious condition, Nanning, Guangxi Province

Source is the FluTrackers H5N6 Cumulative Case List link


H9N2 -

China - Male, 5, onset January 3, Anhui province link link

China - Male, 2, onset on January 18, Anhui province link

China - Female, 51, onset January 11, Jiangxi province link

China - Female, 2, onset January 29, Anhui province link

Cambodia - Female, 1, onset February 27 link

China - Male, 5, onset April 26, diagnosed June 2, mild case, Yueyang City, Hunan province link

China - Male, 2, onset May 8, diagnosed June 1, mild case, Bijie City, Guizhou province link

China - Male, 1, onset April 28, Sichuan province link

China - Male 1, onset August 1, Guangdong province link

Source is the FluTrackers Global Cumulative H9N2 Partial Case List 1998 - Current link


H10N3


China - Male, 33, onset June 11, 2022, Zhejiang Province link

Source is the FluTrackers Global Human H10N3, H3N8, H7N4 Case Lists link



H3N8


Male, 4, onset April 5, 2022, hospitalized April 10, 2022, critical condition, Henan Province link

Male, 5, onset May 9, 2022, recovered, Changsha, Hunan Province, who had visited a live poultry market before onset. He developed symptoms on May 9 and had recovered. link

Source is the FluTrackers Global Human H10N3, H3N8, H7N4 Case Lists link

 

[Pathfinder]

Translation Google

Avian flu: the virus changes its seasonal rhythm

For the first time since its emergence, avian influenza seems to have lost its seasonal rhythm, leading to the death of several million wild birds during the summer: a change that worries scientists.

BY LOU CHABANI
PUBLISHED 28 OCT 2022, 11:29 CEST

The last few years have taught us well: viruses are highly unpredictable adversaries
...
The H5N1 virus has until now exhibited a seasonal rhythm. "The usual cycle since 2006 for the avian influenza virus includes an increase in cases between October and November until March", explains Doctor Lécu, chief veterinarian of the Parc Zoologique de Paris, responsible for the fight against the virus. avian influenza in French zoos . "For the first time since 2012, we are combining both epizootic profiles [which affects several species] in birds, and an attenuation, or even disappearance of the seasonality that we have seen until now": a change in unforeseen pace that claimed the lives of millions of birds this summer, both on farms and in the wild.
...
Faced with this resurgence of cases and the increase in the death rate of the virus, many studies have been set up to understand the functioning of the current strain of H5N1. "We have identified this year at least eight different genotypes of this H5N1 HPAI strain, and the first analyzes show a higher rate of replication of the virus than in the strains of the last fifteen years", specifies the person in charge of the plan of fight against the avian influenza. “Furthermore, the host immunological reaction also appears to be more acute in models like the duck. »

Faced with this evolution towards a much more aggressive form of the virus, the question of possible transmission to humans arises. On this point, Doctor Lécu presents a much more reassuring observation. “If it does not seem for the moment endowed with genes giving it zoonotic capacities [Editor’s note: the ability to pass freely from animal to human being], rare cases have been identified. Very sporadic, these cases are non-lethal and have spread over several years since the virus has been circulating, but justify careful monitoring by ANSES. The passage on other mammals has been objectified: red fox, badger, bear, lynx… without representing a threat for these species. »
...
However, the epidemic is not devoid of consequences for human beings. In addition to causing the death of many poultry, the slightest case of infection also implies the slaughter of the entire farm concerned: a dramatic economic loss for breeders in the current economic context . The H5N1 virus also represents a particularly serious danger for avian biodiversity, especially for species whose populations are already fragile. “The more the populations are reduced in number, the more the threats are potentiated. And the risk of infection can then become the last fatal blow to a species when there are not enough individuals left to cope,” warns the veterinarian. “For example: there are approximately less than 10,000 Dalmatian Pelicans ( Pelecanus crispus )) in Europe, a Near Threatened species on the IUCN scale. In March 2022, between 1,000 and 2,000 individuals died in Greece from avian influenza. We are therefore talking about the rapid withdrawal of more than 20% of the total population on the planet. If this happens several more times, the species could become extinct on a short timescale. »
...
The future of the epidemic remains difficult to imagine today, and therefore to predict for researchers. “Wild birds have lived with the H5N1 virus for a long time and co-evolved with it. But occasionally, you have to be careful that certain populations are not decimated,” concludes Dr. Lécu.

https://www.nationalgeographic.fr/s...aviaire-le-virus-change-son-rythme-saisonnier

 

[Pathfinder]

Bird flu: What is it and what's behind the outbreak?

Published
1 day ago
By Helen Briggs & Jeremy Howell
BBC News
...
The current wave of bird flu is the worst one ever in Europe, and in the US.

"A hundred and sixty million domestic birds worldwide have been killed by this virus, or have had to be culled by farmers to contain it," says Professor Munir Iqbal of the UK's Pirbright Institute, which specialises in animal welfare.

"This includes 100 million domestic birds in the US and Europe."
...
More wild birds than ever before have been killed by bird flu this year - with sea birds being especially hard hit.

The current virus has affected 80 different bird species," says Professor Iqbal. "For example, it has killed 40% of the skua population in Scotland, and 2,000 Dalmatian pelicans in Greece."

This "huge outbreak" has also spread into species such as seals and foxes, says veterinary expert Dr Louise Moncla of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, US.

"These outbreaks began in Europe, then spread to North America, and unlike past outbreaks, have not died out," she says.

We are in the middle of an "unprecedented wildlife disease outbreak, the breadth and scope of which is staggering", says Dr Rebecca Poulson of the University of Georgia, US.

Scientists are unsure why this outbreak is so much worse than others. It may be that the virus has mutated to enable it to spread more readily from bird to bird, or to hang around longer in the environment.

Dr Nancy Beerens, bird flu expert at Wageningen Bioveterinary Research in the Netherlands, which analyses suspected bird flu samples, says the virus may now be ubiquitous in wild birds.

"As the virus now has infected many wild bird species, it becomes unlikely that it will disappear again from the bird population," she says.
...
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-63464065

 

[Pathfinder]

Expert comment – Human health risks of current bird flu outbreak

7 December 2022

Infectious disease experts at LSHTM address some of the human health concerns regarding the current outbreak of bird flu

As the world grapples with one of the largest recorded outbreaks of bird flu (H5N1 avian influenza) concerns have been raised in the media about the potential risks to human health and whether this is the next pandemic we should be preparing for.

Professor John Edmunds, Professor of Infectious Disease Modelling at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), said:

“One of the curious effects of the COVID-19 pandemic is that it seems to have taken our attention away from other infectious disease threats. There is an ongoing outbreak of Ebola Sudan virus in Uganda at the moment that most people are completely unaware of and at home we have been suffering from a major outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza (bird flu) for over a year now. Indeed, this strain of H5N1 is spreading globally affecting domestic and wild birds across much of the Northern Hemisphere.

“It is highly pathogenic and very transmissible amongst birds. There are many instances of die-offs in commercial flocks and nesting colonies which has led to strict measures being put in place to try to reduce its spread. These include culling of affected commercial flocks, the imposition of “protection zones” around affected premises and an order to ensure that all domestic birds are housed indoors (your free-range turkey this Christmas will have been restricted to strutting round its barn). Even with these measures, H5N1 has continued to spread. Indeed, the frequency of outbreaks is increasing, with 126 confirmed cases in England since the start of this October out of a total of 259 cases since the outbreak began in October 2021. With each case resulting in the slaughter of affected flocks, millions of birds have been culled so far. The impact on farmers and the poultry industry has been devasting.

“So, what are the risks to humans? At present they seem to be very low. There have only been two documented human infections with this strain of H5N1 – one here in the UK and one in the US. Crucially, there are no known cases of human-to-human transmission. The virus seems to lack the ability to infect us efficiently. Whilst this is undoubtably good news, there is no room for complacency. Influenza viruses mutate and evolve rapidly and the more this virus spreads the greater the chances that it can acquire the ability to infect humans. This could be as a result of a reassortment event where a person (or perhaps another mammal, such as a pig) is infected by H5N1 and another strain of flu simultaneously. An event such as this led to the last influenza pandemic in 2009. So, it is critical to take precautions to avoid being infected. These mostly affect poultry and veterinary workers or those with backyard flocks, but the rest of us should also be mindful of the risks. Do not touch dead or sick wild birds and report any suspect cases immediately. The risk to humans remains low: prompt and careful action by all of us can help to keep it that way.”

Professor Punam Mangtani, Professor of Epidemiology at LSHTM added:

“The importance of good biosecurity and avoidance of contact with sick or dead birds and poultry and live bird markets where there are outbreaks of “bird 'flu” is underlined by the findings of LSHTM researchers with public health colleagues at the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research, Bangladesh. Combined vet and medical teams examining crow deaths in 2017 at live bird poultry markets noted workers there were exposed to aerosolised viable avian influenza A viruses.

“Other recent work has also highlighted moderate year round transmission of avian influenza in poultry in live bird markets. Although there were different timings in peaks of viral activity compared to seasonal influenza in humans, there is still the risk of influenza viral reassortment leading to possible pandemic influenza strains, adding to the evidence supporting the urgent need for large scale improvements in live animal markets.”

Further information

UKHSA update on avian flu including public health advice.

https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/newsevents/...-human-health-risks-current-bird-flu-outbreak

 

[Emily]

Found this in the HB email dump. He was getting medical advice from the military prior to a trip to Taiwan and Beijing in 2011. I wonder if Oseltamivir is still effective?
FYI Safe Travels

* Avian influenza H5N1, excreted in large amounts in the droppings of infected birds, is endemic. Sporadic human cases acquired by direct contact with poultry are reported in this country. The last human case was reported in May 2010. The last case in birds was reported in July 2010. China has reported bird and/or human cases of H5N1 throughout most of the country. Although risk to travelers is minimal, avoid places where direct contact with birds and/or their secretions may occur, such as live animal markets and poultry farms. Well cooked chicken is safe to eat. Current influenza vaccines are not protective. Oseltamivir is effective.

 

[Emily]

Oseltamivir is still being used. Seems effective, at least as a prophylactic. They also speculate the woman could have natural immunity from her contact with ducks in the past.

https://www.eurosurveillance.org/con...2.27.5.2200061
A case of avian influenza A(H5N1) in England, January 2022

 

[Pathfinder]

Translation Google

Avian flu: with more than 50 million birds slaughtered, it is the most devastating epizootic in its entire history in Europe


Avian flu , Occitanie , Health
Published on 28/12/2022 at 05:01 , update at 08:46
...
It is a real scourge with which Europe is confronted today and of which public opinion is undoubtedly struggling to measure the exact extent. The avian flu epizootic is, in fact, the “most devastating” that Europe has known in its entire history, according to European health authorities, with more than 50 million birds slaughtered in infected farms alone between October 2021 and September 2022. A real tragedy for breeders as the virus is becoming endemic on the continent, the acceleration of its spread being linked not only to the drop in temperatures, but also to the "high migratory activity of wild birds,” according to the Department of Agriculture.

3.3 million animals slaughtered in France

In France, from August 1 to December 21, 3.3 million animals have already been slaughtered, half of which are ducks. Two million were killed in December alone, according to the Ministry of Agriculture. “The health situation with regard to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in France has deteriorated since August and has worsened in recent weeks. The number of 100 outbreaks of avian influenza in breeding was reached on December 2,” the ministry said last Thursday.

“In wildlife, the number of cases has also increased sharply in mainland France and in Europe. More than half of the breeding outbreaks are concentrated in the Pays de la Loire region in a zone at risk of dissemination (ZRD) with a high density of poultry, (especially in Vendée and Maine-et-Loire)”, detailed the ministry, which recalls that “the level of risk had been raised from moderate to high on November 11 on the whole of the metropolitan territory. All poultry must be sheltered and gatherings of poultry are prohibited. As of December 23, 234 outbreaks on farms have been confirmed since August 1. »

Each time an outbreak is detected, health policy measures are decided by the prefects to limit the spread of the virus: slaughter of animals and, if necessary, preventive slaughter within a perimeter defined by prefectural order, cleaning and disinfection of outbreaks and prohibition of the movement of poultry in the protection zones (ZP) and surveillance (ZS) defined around the outbreaks.

But faced with the scale of this epizootic, the only solution remains vaccination, as indicated by the Minister of Agriculture, Marc Fesneau, during a trip last Thursday to representatives of the agricultural sector in La Roche-sur -Yon (Vendée).

"The objective that I set is an objective of being able to spend the 2023-2024 season with a vaccine, a vaccine strategy", declared the minister, considering that, until then, we must work to "safeguard the genetic heritage of the sector" and to ensure that the compensation "goes quickly enough not to weaken the treasuries so much, that people are forced to stop their activity".

While at this stage, there is no sufficiently effective vaccine, with a marketing authorization, and even less European regulations authorizing vaccination, we must however move quickly. Experiments are currently underway in Europe with laboratory results expected in the spring which will determine the vaccine strategy to be applied. “It is very important that as many animals as possible be vaccinated before the fall so that behind, we no longer have a virus which circulates massively on our territory”, insisted Pascal Sachot, spokesperson for the Confédération paysanne. in Vendee.

Avoid any distortion of competition in Europe

"The events make professionals fear the worst, already affected during the first episode by the loss of more than 20 million poultry in France, including 12 million meat poultry (excluding laying hens)", reacted yesterday the interprofession of meat poultry (Anvol), recalling that "in the face of this historical context and beyond the sector's priority commitment to respecting and strengthening strict biosecurity measures" it "is in favor of the implementation of vaccination against avian influenza. »

If a European decision to authorize vaccines is expected in February, professionals also want to warn of the need to preserve France's export markets (exports represent 1 billion euros per year) in case some countries would refuse vaccinated poultry. "The aim is to avoid distortions of competition and loss of outlets which would upset the economic balance of the sector, endangering the sustainability of the sector, its 100,000 jobs and its contribution to the country's food sovereignty", warns the Anvol.

https://www.ladepeche.fr/2022/12/28...e-grippe-aviaire-de-son-histoire-10891942.php

 

[Pathfinder]

‘Pandemic potential’: bird flu outbreaks fuelling chance of human spillover
...

Supported by
theguardian.org
About this content
Ashifa Kassam
@ashifa_k
Thu 12 Jan 2023 02.00 EST

...
“There is concern about it having pandemic potential,” says Wendy Blay Puryear, a molecular virologist at Tufts University. “Before Covid was on anybody’s radar, this was the one that we were all watching very closely.”
...
The more the virus spreads, the greater the chances are that it may spill over into humans, says Thijs Kuiken, a professor in the department of viroscience at Erasmus University Medical Centre in Rotterdam. Once the virus infects humans, the concern is that it could further adapt to allow human-to-human transmission.

“The chance of this happening is very small, but the impact – if it does happen – is very big, because it means that we then have a new influenza pandemic,” he says, pointing to the 1918 flu, believed to have killed as many as 50 million people, as an example of a pandemic that has been linked to an avian influenza and originating in birds.
...
The virus would probably require more than one or two changes to enable human-to-human transmission, says Ian Barr, the deputy director of the WHO’s Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza in Melbourne.

“We never really know with these viruses … but they’ve been with us for 18 years in various forms and they haven’t yet gained that function of being easily transmissible to man,” says Barr. “So, hopefully the virus finds that a difficult thing to do, but it’s something which we’re not entirely knowledgable about.”
...
https://www.theguardian.com/environ...-outbreaks-fuelling-chance-of-human-spillover

 

[Pathfinder]

Largest global bird flu outbreak ‘in history’ shows no sign of slowing

Issued on: 13/01/2023 - 20:20

Text by:
Joanna YORK
...

More than twelve months since the virus was first detected in late 2021, infections have remained consistently high and show little sign of slowing. In fact, they seem to be gathering pace – European data shows that in autumn 2022 the epidemic was more virulent than the same time the previous year and the number of infected farms 35 percent higher.

“In terms of the numbers of birds, farms, and countries affected, the number of birds that have been killed and the duration of the outbreak, the current epidemic is truly the largest we've seen in history,” says Ian Brown, chair of the joint World Organisation for Animal Health and Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN's Scientific Network on Animal Influenza.
...
The H5N1 strain currently circulating originated among wild birds whose migration patterns have accelerated its global propagation. The rate of reproduction is high; one bird is able to infect up to 100 others through saliva and other bodily fluids.
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With no signs of global infections slowing the stakes are rising, especially as there is little hope of respite at the end of the traditional winter flu season. In 2022, “the virus managed to maintain itself, particularly in northern Europe through the summer", says Brown. “That's the first time it's done that – it's become a year-round disease.”

In addition, this outbreak marks the first time bird flu has been detected in Latin America with outbreaks in Columbia, Peru, Venezuela, Chile, and Ecuador, posing a potential risk to farmed and wild birds including the unique species that inhabit the Galapagos.

For wild birds, long-term solutions are hard to come by. It would be unethical to cull populations. Possible preventative measures, such as removing infected dead birds from colonies, must be done without disrupting wildlife living in the surrounding habitat.
...
For some farmed birds in Europe structured intervention is probable: immunity through vaccination would reduce the need for culling and the likelihood of infected poultry going on to infect other bird species. Although it is unlikely every farmed bird would be inoculated, some may get vaccines as soon as summer 2023. “There's been intensive work on vaccine trials and The European Commission has developed a framework on how these vaccines can be delivered with an ambition to be able to roll that out by summer,” Brown says.

Regular poultry vaccination might become an inevitability, he adds. As human life has been said to be entering an age of pandemics in the wake of Covid, the same is now true for birds. “We are facing a continuous threat that these outbreaks might occur every four or five years,” says Brown. “So, we have to look at interventions and how we control the disease to tip the balance in favour of removing this problem. Vaccination clearly is going to have an important role to play.”

https://www.france24.com/en/environ...-outbreak-in-history-shows-no-sign-of-slowing

 

[Pathfinder]

Post #10:
https://flutrackers.com/forum/forum/...anuary-10-2023

Girl in Ecuador (9) with bird flu: how worrying is it that a person is infected?

Health
January 13, 2023

The 9-year-old is certainly not the first person to be affected by the bird flu virus, but there is an important difference, according to avian flu expert Thijs Kuiken of Erasmus MC. “This variant of bird flu, which we also have in the Netherlands, has already been diagnosed in people in the United States and Great Britain. But these people became very slightly ill or not at all ill,” he explains.

The case in Ecuador is the first in which a human has contracted pneumonia from bird flu. Kuik: “We have suspected for some time that this bird flu that is spreading around the world can make people sick, and now there is evidence for this.”
...

 

[Pathfinder]

An ‘unprecedented pandemic of avian flu’ is wreaking havoc on the U.S. poultry industry. Humans may be at risk too, experts warn

BYERIN PRATER
January 23, 2023 at 12:24 PM CST

...
This season’s bird flu outbreak is the worst in U.S. history, having surpassed a 2015 outbreak the CDC once called “arguably the most significant animal health event in U.S. history.” That year, nearly 51 million birds died nationally due to H5N1 and related avian flu viruses. This season’s outbreak is also the worst in U.K. history, with farmers in England ordered to keep their birds indoors as of Nov. 7 in a poultry “lock down” of sorts.
...
“The world is facing an unprecedented pandemic of avian flu among caged and wild bird populations,” Rajiv Chowdhury, senior epidemiologist and professor of global health at Florida International University, tells Fortune.

What’s more, the poultry industry likely cannot “sustain itself in countries like the U.S. if we continue to see annual surges,” Dr. Michael Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP), adds.
...
Oserholm and Chowdhury are concerned about additional spread from birds to humans, and about possible transmission from humans who contract the bird flu to other humans—especially as the virus traverses the globe and makes the leap to more mammals, due to mutations.
...
The likelihood of human-to-human transmission of H5N1 is “very low,” Chowdhury says. But if it were to occur in a sustained manner, it could rock the globe in a way not seen since the 1918 Spanish Flu.

If H5N1 indeed makes a sustained crossover to humans, “the potential impact could be significant,” he says, signifying the start of a “new global influenza pandemic.”
...
When it comes to planning for the next pandemic, influenza has always been considered a likely culprit, Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, tells Fortune.

While the Ecuadorian girl and her disturbing bout with H5N1 “may very well be a one-off” case, “we could easily have an H5N1 or another pandemic of influenza,” he says.

“It should scare you.”
...

https://fortune.com/well/2023/01/23...ultry-industry-peril-humans-risk-spanish-flu/

 

[sharon sanders]

hat tip to Michael Coston for link


‘Incredibly concerning’: Bird flu outbreak at Spanish mink farm triggers pandemic fears

Spread among captive mink could give the H5N1 strain opportunities to evolve and adapt to mammals

• 24 JAN 2023
• 5:00 PM
• BYKAI KUPFERSCHMIDT

When mink at a big farm in Galicia, a region in northwestern Spain, started to die in October 2022, veterinarians initially thought the culprit might be SARS-CoV-2, which has struck mink farms in several other countries. But lab tests soon revealed something scarier: a deadly avian influenza virus named H5N1. Authorities immediately placed workers on the farm under quarantine restrictions. The more than 50,000 mink at the facility were killed and their carcasses destroyed.

None of the farm workers became infected. But the episode, described in a paper in Eurosurveillance last week, has reignited long-smoldering fears that H5N1 could trigger a human pandemic. The virus is not known to spread well between mammals; people almost always catch it from infected birds, not one another. But now, H5N1 appears to have spread through a densely packed mammalian population and gained at least one mutation that favors mammal-to-mammal spread. Virologists warn that H5N1, now rampaging through birds around the world, could invade other mink farms and become still more transmissible.

“This is incredibly concerning,” says Tom Peacock, a virologist at Imperial College London. “This is a clear mechanism for an H5 pandemic to start.” Isabella Monne, a veterinary researcher at the European Union’s Reference Laboratory for Avian Influenza in Italy, where the samples from Spain were sequenced, calls the finding “a warning bell.”

more.....

https://www.science.org/content/arti...pandemic-fears

 

[sharon sanders]

Widespread in random wild mammals is not a good thing for humans:

Pathogens - Zoonotic Mutation of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 Virus Identified in the Brain of Multiple Wild Carnivore Species, 2021-2022 outbreak data

Russia - As many as 2,500 dead seals found on the coast of Caspian Sea in Dagestan - distemper is one theory/oxygen deprivation is another - positive for bird flu - December 6, 2022

Quebec - A dolphin may have died of bird flu near Rimouski - H5N1 confirmed

Maine: Seal Deaths Linked To Avian H5N1

Japan Detects 1st Bird Flu Case in Mammal (Fox), H5N1 - April 5, 2022

Estonia: H5N1 in a dead fox reported

Transbound Emerg Dis . H5N1 Avian Influenza Virus without 80-84 Amino Acid Deletion at the NS1 Protein Hijacks the Innate Immune System of Dendritic Cells for an Enhanced Mammalian Pathogenicity

-------------------------------------

Also - on a farm:

Spain: More than 50,000 mink slaughtered on a farm in A Coruña after H5N1 avian flu outbreak was detected - October 18, 2022

 

[Pathfinder]

Translation Google

Avian flu: why is the contamination of mink in Spain and a cat in France worrying?

By Alexandra Tauziac
Published on 01/27/2023 at 11:19

Although it remains rare, the contamination of mammals by the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus is not unprecedented. Problem: the more the virus spreads among mammals, the more likely it is to mutate and infect humans

A mink farm slaughtered in Spain, a cat euthanized in France: in recent months, several cases of contamination of mammals by the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAI) have been talked about.

That mammals catch avian influenza, in itself, is not unheard of. Gray seal, European otter, red fox, lynx, raccoon, grizzly bear or badger: even if the phenomenon is rare, it has already been observed. But the more it occurs, the more the virus is likely to mutate and spread, especially to humans.

A virus that adapts to mammals

This is probably what happened last October in an American mink farm in Carral, Spain. According to a January 19 Eurosurveillance report , "Genetic sequencing showed that the animals were infected with a new variant of H5N1, which includes genetic material from a strain found in gulls, as well as a genetic change known to increase the ability of some animal influenza viruses to reproduce in mammals. »

So far, all known mammalian infections have occurred through “direct contact with contaminated material: animals that ingest wild bird droppings or feed on infected animals…” This is likely how the virus got there. in the Carral farm, but what is unheard of is that it then spread between the minks, from hot spots of two to four pens, in which all the animals were infected and died . In the aftermath, the 51,986 mink on the farm were slaughtered.

Risk of spread to humans

If the eleven agricultural workers in contact with them have all tested negative, the authors of the report draw a very important lesson. Since mink are “susceptible to avian and human influenza A viruses, […] this species could serve as a potential mixing vessel for interspecific transmission between birds, mammals and humans”.

This is also the fear aroused by the case of a domestic cat belonging to a family from Deux-Sèvres (New Aquitaine), euthanized last December after being infected with avian flu. "The sensitivity of cats, and more broadly of felines, to HPAI viruses has been known since 2004", according to ANSES (National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety), which evokes cases in Thailand and Germany in 2006, in particular. But “this is the first time that such contamination has been observed in France”, adds the Agency.

As in the case of mink in Spain, "the virus detected in this cat has genetic characteristics of adaptation to mammals", explains ANSES, which specifies that only the cat was carrying this mutant virus, which was not found in ducks from the farm at the origin of the contamination. The agency therefore warns against "the contamination of pets such as cats, which could facilitate the passage of the virus to humans".

https://www.sudouest.fr/societe/ani...t-en-france-est-elle-inquietante-13835205.php

--------------------------

See also:

France - 1 new outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 in a cat in a poultry farm in Mauléon, Deux-Sèvres (WOAH, December 28, 2022)
https://flutrackers.com/forum/forum...-in-mauléon-deux-sèvres-woah-december-28-2022

 

[sharon sanders]

Pathogens: Zoonotic Mutation of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 Virus Identified in the Brain of Multiple Wild Carnivore Species

 

[Pathfinder]

Translation Google

Avian flu: "Nothing indicates that the virus represents a very significant risk for humans in the short term", estimates specialist Jean-Luc Guérin

This researcher at the National Veterinary School of Toulouse answers questions from franceinfo, while the H5N1 epidemic is decimating wild birds and even contaminating mammals.

Interview by - Thomas Baïetto
France Televisions
Postedon 08/02/2023 12:34
Updateon 08/02/2023 15:08

The bird flu epidemic continues to wreak havoc among wild and domestic birds around the world. But does the virus threaten humans? Recent contaminations of mammals have raised some concerns. In France, a cat died of it at the end of January. To take stock of the situation, franceinfo interviewed Jean-Luc Guérin, researcher at the National Veterinary School of Toulouse (Haute-Garonne), unit director at Inrae and specialist in this H5N1 flu.

Franceinfo: Where does bird flu come from?

Jean-Luc Guérin : The story of this H5N1 virus began about 25 years ago (in 1996) in Guangdong, China. There was then a sneaky circulation throughout the Asian zone, with the appearance of new properties, such as the ability to infect humans occasionally and to infect migratory wild birds. This emergence occurred in areas where there are high breeding densities – not necessarily industrial – of ducks, chickens and interactions with wildlife.

From 2005, the viruses circulated in the migration corridors, with a first focus in France at the beginning of 2006. They continued to evolve, to diversify and to form "reassortants" - an English term which designates the equivalent of variants. In this genetic abundance, a clade – that is to say a category –, 2.3.4.4.b, is the one that has been causing us concern since 2016. Within this clade, several "reassortants" have appeared, presenting a capacity for very efficient multiplication in many wild and domestic birds.

Where is the epidemic?

The host spectrum expanded and the virus became endemic in wild birds. Until now, there was a close link between the virus and the flow of migratory birds. Since last summer, there has been no interruption in cases, the virus has taken hold in avian populations for a long time. Massive mortality phenomena have been observed in colonies of birds, particularly sea birds, or on vultures in the south of France. There are also mortalities throughout the territory among seagulls and crows. When you zoom out, this is the case in Europe, the United States and South America. We can therefore speak of a panzootic.

What are the links between this disease and poultry farming?

Today, the virus does not need farms to spread. Propagation takes place within wildlife. But that doesn't mean there wasn't a connection originally, in Asia. And since this initial emergence, there has undoubtedly been a back-and-forth between domestic and wild birds, which has led to the appearance of more severe and more contagious forms of the virus. In Europe, I don't think we can say that farms play a major role in the dynamics of infection on a large scale. This does not exonerate breeding on a global scale, but it is not the breeders of the South-West or Pays de la Loire who are responsible.

Several cases of contamination of mammals have been reported in recent months. What is the risk to human health?

We observed a certain number of contaminations of mammals during the predation of sick birds: foxes, minks, bears or a cat in France. However, there are very few cases of mammal-to-mammal contamination. There was an episode in Spain in a mink farm, but we are not surprised: it is a species particularly receptive to the virus. There have also been cases in seals. Finally, there have been very rare human cases, difficult to document, and mild [see this report from the European Food Safety Authority , in English]

These are very few cases today, but they are nevertheless subject to very precise monitoring. The phenomenon is taken seriously by the veterinary community, but there is no indication that the virus has changed radically and that it would represent a very significant risk for humans in the short term.

However, there are so many contaminations in wildlife that, mathematically, a very unlikely phenomenon is more likely to occur. The more this virus spreads, the more birds there are that replicate it and the more you have the risk that there will be one that generates a new, more pathogenic variant. But for the moment, we are not there, we are far from having viruses adapted to humans.

"Viruses so adapted to birds do not, a priori, have the capacity to effectively infect humans."
Jean Luc Guerin at franceinfo

Wildlife is very hard hit. What are the risks for biodiversity, which is already under threat ?

It's a real subject. Bird populations are very severely affected. There is a diversification of the species affected and not really any species that resist. The infections observed in vultures in France are completely new. Normally, we should arrive at collective immunity, these mortalities should not last, if indeed there are no new viral forms. But we must remain very humble, there may be mortalities that we do not see on smaller and more solitary birds.

Nearly 50 million poultry have been slaughtered in Europe. What are the risks for French farms?

The spread of the virus has completely escaped the logic of infection of migratory birds. Until the winter of 2022, we had a postulate, with a risk period during the downward migration and risk zones. This made it possible to better calibrate the protection of farms in space and time. This pattern no longer holds true. We have possible contamination in summer and in low-risk areas.

"No poultry farm can feel safe from the introduction of the virus."
Jean Luc Guerin at franceinfo

The Ministry of Agriculture has repeatedly mentioned the imminent arrival of a vaccine. Where we are ?

A first series of tests was carried out in duck farms, a priority in France because of the role of these poultry in the spread of the virus. These trials are being analyzed and, in parallel, there is work underway to put in place a real action plan to be able to implement vaccination from September 2023.

https://www.francetvinfo.fr/sante/m...e-le-specialiste-jean-luc-guerin_5645489.html

 

[Pathfinder]

WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing – 8 February 2023

8 February 2023
...
Over the past few weeks there have been several reports of mammals including minks, otters, foxes and sea lions having been infected with H5N1 avian influenza.

H5N1 has spread widely in wild birds and poultry for 25 years, but the recent spillover to mammals needs to be monitored closely.

For the moment, WHO assesses the risk to humans as low.

Since H5N1 first emerged in 1996 we have only seen rare and non-sustained transmission of H5N1 to and between humans.

But we cannot assume that will remain the case, and we must prepare for any change in the status quo.

As always, people are advised not to touch or collect dead or sick wild animals, but to report them to the local authorities.

WHO is working with national authorities and partners to monitor the situation closely, and to study cases of H5N1 infection in humans when they occur.

WHO’s global laboratory network, the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System, identifies and monitors strains of circulating influenza viruses, and provides advice to countries on their risk to human health and available treatment or control measures.

WHO recommends countries strengthen surveillance in settings where humans and farmed or wild animals interact.

WHO is also continuing to engage with manufacturers to make sure that if needed, supplies of vaccines and antivirals would be available for global use.

===
https://www.who.int/director-genera...marks-at-the-media-briefing---8-february-2023

 

[sharon sanders]

FluTrackers.com
@FluTrackers
·
3s
We have bumped our avian flu forums to the front page for easier access.

No one knows what will happen with H5N1 avian flu. It is not great that many types of mammals have become infected.

We are monitoring.

As usual, use at least two sources for your information.