title: Limited transmission of emergent H7N9 influenza A virus in a simulated live animal market: Do chickens pose the principal transmission threat?
abstract: Emergent H7N9 influenza A virus has caused multiple public health and financial hardships. While some epidemiological studies have recognized infected chickens as an important bridge for human infections, the generality of this observation, the minimum infectious dose, and the shedding potential of chickens have received conflicting results. We experimentally tested the ability of domestic chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus) to transmit H7N9 to co-housed chickens and to several other animal species in an experimental live animal market. Results indicated that an infected chicken failed to initiate viral shedding of H7N9 to naïve co-housed chickens. The infected chicken did, however, successfully transmit the virus to quail (Coturnix sp.) located directly below the infected chicken cage. Oral shedding by indirectly infected quail was, on average, greater than ten-fold that of directly inoculated chickens. Best management practices in live animal market systems should consider the position of quail in stacked-cage settings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA. Electronic address: mopargal@rams.colostate.edu.
authors.forename: Angela M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Bosco-Lauth
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
authors.forename: Richard A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Bowen
authors.affiliation: United States Department of Agriculture, National Wildlife Research Center, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
authors.forename: J Jeffrey
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Root
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002645:Chickens / Q000821:virology*; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D064766:Influenza A Virus, H7N9 Subtype / Q000145:classification / Q000502:physiology*; D005585:Influenza in Birds / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission* / Q000821:virology*; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology; D009976:Orthomyxoviridae Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission* / Q000821:virology*; D017201:Virus Shedding
keywords: Chicken; H7N9; House sparrow; Influenza A virus; Live animal market; Pheasant; Pigeon; Quail; Rabbit; Transmission