Scientists at 2 leading UK research establishments have been awarded a grant to research what makes particular strains of bird flu more likely to adapt to infect humans, possibly initiating a pandemic.
The Biotechnology and Biological
Sciences Research Council funding for the Pirbright Institute and Imperial
College, London, will be used to look at which avian flu strains can rapidly
accumulate genetic adaptations that help avian flu viruses infect mammals.
This will enable scientists to
identify which strains pose a threat to humans and potentially cause major
problems across the globe.
As a result, Pirbright scientists are looking at the H9N2 genes to see what
features they give the virus which enable it to rapidly adapt to a non-avian
host.
Dr Holly Shelton, leader of the Influenza Viruses group, said : “Understanding more about how flu viruses change in hosts will help us to know what genetic characteristics to look out for when predicting the next strains that could cause human pandemics.
“We want to know how quickly mutations can appear that allow H9N2 to infect mammals, if other strains have the potential to adapt at the same rate, and what features help them to adapt to mammals so rapidly.”
Avian leucosis virus and avian influenza viruses
Pirbright has also received a grant from the BBSRC –Newton Fund to look at
poultry diseases caused by avian leucosis virus and avian influenza viruses.
The team of scientists, led by Dr Yongxiu Yao and Professor Munir Iqbal, will
build on links with Chinese institutes through the UK-China Centre of
Excellence for Research on Avian Disease.
Professor Iqbal’s team will work to provide information about how the avian influenza viruses that plague the Chinese poultry sector are able to evade current vaccines and what increases the risk of human transmission.
The speed that bird flu viruses are
able to change has become a great concern, especially in Asia, where high
levels of flu circulating in poultry, regular human contact with birds and low
levels of biosecurity increase the risk of transmission from birds to humans.
H9N2
is able to quickly adapt
One of the most recent avian flu
strains to cross the bird-human barrier was H7N9, which has infected over 1,500
people since 2013 and has a 40% mortality rate.
Although H7N9 has not yet shown
evidence of being able to transmit human to human, there is currently no way of
telling whether it will be able to do so in the future. Understanding what
features allow rapid adaptation is therefore at the top of the list for many
flu researchers.
The Influenza Viruses group at
Pirbright has previously shown that the bird flu strain H9N2 is able to quickly
adapt the viral genes involves in replication during infection of mice. Since
it is known that the H9N2 strain donated genetic material to the H7N9 virus, it
may have provided H7N9 with crucial traits that improve the ability to infect
humans.
Dr Holly Shelton, leader of the Influenza Viruses group, said : “Understanding more about how flu viruses change in hosts will help us to know what genetic characteristics to look out for when predicting the next strains that could cause human pandemics.
“We want to know how quickly mutations can appear that allow H9N2 to infect mammals, if other strains have the potential to adapt at the same rate, and what features help them to adapt to mammals so rapidly.”
Avian leucosis virus and avian influenza viruses
Pirbright has also received a grant from the BBSRC –Newton Fund to look at
poultry diseases caused by avian leucosis virus and avian influenza viruses.
The team of scientists, led by Dr Yongxiu Yao and Professor Munir Iqbal, will
build on links with Chinese institutes through the UK-China Centre of
Excellence for Research on Avian Disease.Professor Iqbal’s team will work to provide information about how the avian influenza viruses that plague the Chinese poultry sector are able to evade current vaccines and what increases the risk of human transmission.
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