Scientists
have made a startling discovery that pigs in China’s Guangdong province are
infected with avian influenza viruses.
Scientists have made a startling discovery
that pigs in China’s Guangdong province are infected with three strains of
avian influenza viruses.
Led by Dr. Zhang Guihong, a team of
scientists from the College of Veterinary Medicine, South China Agricultural
University in Guangzhou published their findings recently in the Journal of
Clinical Microbiology.
In the period from 2010 to 2012, the
scientists examined serum from pigs for both the avian and swine types of
influenza virus. In total, 1,080 21- to 25-week-old pigs were tested for the
H3, H4, H5, and H6 subtypes of avian influenza virus, and the H1 and H3
subtypes of swine influenza virus.
Looking first at the avian influenza A virus,
0.93 percent of pigs were positive for the H3 subtype, 1.6 percent were
positive for the H4 subtype, and 1.8 percent were positive for the H6 subtype.
Of the swine flu virus, 35 percent of pigs
were positive for H1N1, and 19.7 percent were positive for H3N2.
None of samples were positive for the avian
H5 virus, which meant that the pigs had most likely been sporadically infected
with the H3, H4, and H6 subtypes.
Importantly, no serum samples collected in 2001
were positive for any of the avian viruses, indicating that transmission into
swine was recent.
Influenza A virus is responsible both for
pandemics that have killed millions worldwide, and for the much less severe
annual outbreaks of influenza. Because pigs can be infected with both human and
avian influenza viruses, they are thought to serve as “mixing vessels” for
genetic reassortment that could lead to pandemics.
In the lab, pigs have been infected
experimentally by all avian H1-H13 subtypes. However, natural transmission of
avian influenza to pigs has been documented only rarely.
“We recommend strongly that the pork industry
worldwide should monitor the prevalence of influenza in pigs, considering their
important role in transmitting this virus to humans,” said Dr. Zhang.
The article can be found at: Su S et al. (2012)
Seroepidemiological evidence of avian influenza A virus transmission in pigs in
southern China.
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