title: Characterization of a highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 virus isolated from an ostrich.
abstract: The continued spread of a highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 virus among poultry and wild birds has posed a potential threat to human public health. An influenza pandemic happens, when a new subtype that has not previously circulated in humans emerges. Almost all of the influenza pandemics in history have originated from avian influenza viruses (AIV). Birds are significant reservoirs of influenza viruses. In the present study, we performed a survey of avian influenza virus in ostriches and H5N1 virus (A/Ostrich/SuZhou/097/03, China097) was isolated. This H5N1 virus is highly pathogenic to both chickens and mice. It is also able to replicate in the lungs of, and to cause death in, BALB/c mice following intranasal administration. It forms plaques in chicken embryo fibroblast (CEF) cells in the absence of trypsin. The hemagglutinin (HA) gene of the virus is genetically similar to A/Goose/Guangdong/1/96(H5N1) and belongs to clade 0. The HA sequence contains multiple basic amino acids adjacent to the cleavage site, a motif associated with HPAI viruses. More importantly, the existence of H5N1 isolates in ostriches highlights the potential threat of wild bird infections to veterinary and public health.
authors.affiliation: Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, 20 Dong-Da Street, Fengtai District, Beijing 100071, PR China.
authors.forename: Penghui
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.lastname: Dongmei
authors.forename: Cheng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Chong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xing
authors.forename: Deyan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Zhongpeng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhan
authors.forename: Yueqiang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Duan
authors.forename: Weihong
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.forename: Daxin
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Xiufan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Xiliang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002642:Chick Embryo; D002645:Chickens / Q000821:virology; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D053124:Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D005585:Influenza in Birds / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology*; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology; D008168:Lung / Q000821:virology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D010802:Phylogeny; D020310:Struthioniformes / Q000821:virology*; D014779:Virus Replication