Researchers from China and Nottingham have identified mutational changes occurring in a subtype of avian flu Researchers also say that the findings raise concerns of a potential epidemic or pandemic in the making and that concerted research is necessary to closely monitor such viruses in poultry and humans.
The results, which have been published in Cell, report on the characterization of a human isolate – from a human patient – of the H3N8 avian influenza virus (AIV). Using laboratory mice and ferrets as models for human infection, the study found that the virus has undergone several adaptive changes to cause severe animal infections and making it transmissible by the airborne route between animals.
In humans, the avian H3N8 virus infection has been found to cause acute respiratory distress syndrome and can even be fatal. The virus is widespread in chicken flocks; however previously, the features of how it might be transmitted from animals to humans is poorly understood.
“We demonstrate that an avian H3N8 virus isolated from a patient with severe pneumonia replicated efficiently in human bronchial and lung epithelial cells was extremely harmful in its effects in laboratory mammalian hosts and could be passed on through respiratory droplets,” says Professor Kin-Chow Chang, at the
“Importantly, we discovered that the virus had acquired human receptor binding preference and amino DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.08.011