The team of Academician Chen Hualan reported on the temporal and spatial transmission, biological characteristics of the H5N8 subtype avian influenza virus and the protective effect of current vaccines in my country

Since 2020, the H5N8 subtype avian influenza virus (hereinafter referred to as the H5N8 virus) has caused nearly 2,800 outbreaks of poultry and wild birds in more than 20 countries in Europe and Asia, resulting in the death or culling of more than 33 million poultry, including more than 1,100 in South Korea.
Ten thousand poultry and more than 9 million poultry in Japan have caused huge economic losses to the global poultry breeding industry
.

In order to scientifically prevent and control the H5N8 avian influenza epidemic, it is urgent to grasp the spread of viruses in time and space, understand the pathogenicity of these viruses to different birds and mammals, and determine whether the avian influenza vaccine can effectively block the invasion of this type of virus from wild birds into poultry
.

The team of Academician Chen Hualan from the Harbin Institute of Veterinary Medicine, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences has conducted research on these issues.
The relevant results have recently been titled "Genetic and biological characteristics of the globally circulating H5N8 avian influenza viruses and the protective efficacy offered by the poultry vaccine currently used in China".
Published online in Science China Life Sciences magazine
.

The research team collected and analyzed 41,172 poultry swab samples and 317 wild bird samples between September 2020 and June 2021, and isolated 36 H5N8 virus strains, of which 22 were from wild birds and 14 were from ducks and birds.
Goose
.

These viruses are divided into two gene types.
The first type of virus was found to be circulated in Europe from January to June of 2020, South Korea and Japan from October to December, and introduced to China by swan in January 2021; The type virus was first detected in poultry in Iraq in May 2020.
It was endemic in Russia from June to September.
It was introduced to more European countries in October, and was introduced into China by swans, and then spread to 16 species of wild birds and some in China.
Ducks and geese of the region
.

The global spatio-temporal spread of H5N8 viruses since 2020.
These viruses are highly lethal to chickens, mild to ducks, and virulence to mice varies from strain to strain
.

More importantly, the researchers found that the conventionally immunized chickens and ducks in our country's poultry farms can completely resist the H5N8 virus attack, explaining why the H5N8 virus has not caused the outbreak of poultry avian influenza even though the H5N8 virus was introduced into wild birds in our country
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In view of the fact that the widespread H5N8 virus in wild birds poses a continuing threat to poultry and public health, the study strongly urges high-risk countries to immunize poultry with H5 vaccine to effectively block the virus from entering poultry from wild birds and protect human life and health
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Cui Pengfei, Zeng Xianying, Li Yanbing, Shi Jianzhong and Li Xuyong of Liaocheng University from the Harbin Veterinary Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences are the first authors of the article.
Academician Chen Hualan and researcher Deng Guohua of the Harbin Veterinary Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences are the corresponding authors of the paper
.

For details of the research, please read the original text▼[click the link below or read the original text] Cui, P.
, Zeng, X.
, Li, X.
, Li, Y.
, Shi, J.
, Zhao, C.
, Qu, Z.
, Wang , Y.
, Guo, J.
, Gu, W.
, et al.
(2021).
Genetic and biological characteristics of the globally circulating H5N8 avian influenza viruses and the protective efficacy offered by the poultry vaccine currently used in China.
Sci China Life Sci 64, https://doi.
org/10.
1007/s11427-021-2025-y