【News Quest = Science Reporter Kim Hyeong-geun】 Avian influenza (AI) is not a disease limited to poultry such as chickens and ducks. It is ready to attack not only marine mammals such as seabirds and sea lions, but also humans.
The emergence of the H5N1 avian influenza virus, a pathogen that is spreading across species boundaries into marine environments, is raising serious concerns among wildlife protection authorities.
A recent joint study conducted by the University of California, Davis, and Argentina’s National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA) found that the influenza virus affects both marine animals and birds living along the Atlantic coast of South America.
Avian influenza (AI) is not a disease limited to poultry such as chickens and ducks. After threatening marine mammals such as seabirds and sea lions, they are now ready to attack humans too. [사진=어스닷컴]
Spread across species boundaries to all species in the world
Among avian influenza viruses, the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus not only mutates very rapidly but also has the characteristic of being easily transmitted to other animals.
Quarantine is not easy because infected birds spread avian influenza through contact with other domestic chickens or ducks or through droppings. “H5N1” refers to the serotype.
The research team focused on brain samples collected from dead sea lions, seals and terns found in Argentina’s most severely affected sea lion colonies.
As a result of the analysis, H5N1 infection was confirmed in all samples and almost identical viral sequences were revealed in all samples.
These same viruses have previously been identified in marine mammals and human cases in Peru and Chile, notably in terns for the first time.
“This confirms that the H5N1 avian influenza virus has adapted to marine mammals but still has the ability to infect birds,” underlined Dr. Agustina Rimondi, first author of the study and INTA virologist.
He explained: “This virus is a pathogen that occurs in a variety of species, and the presence of mammalian adaptation mutations in the tern viral sequence means there is a high possibility of transmission between marine mammals.”
Devastated sea lions and elephant seals in South America, marching towards Antarctica
“However, the likelihood that this virus currently poses a risk to humans is relatively low,” said lead author Marcela Uhart, a wildlife veterinarian at UC Davis.
But he warned that “there is likely to be increased concern if this virus continues to replicate in mammals,” underlining the importance of continued surveillance and timely efforts to mitigate this risk.
The 2.3.4.4b strain of H5N1, which Dr. Wuhardt called “this new monster,” emerged during the global COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
It first affected seabirds in Europe, then spread to South Africa and then to the Americas, where it threatened poultry.
It reached Argentina in February 2023 and demonstrated its power in August of the same year by dealing a fatal blow to sea lions living on the Atlantic coast of Tierra del Fuego. It then moved north again, with devastating effects on both marine mammals and seabirds.
Dr. Marcela Uhart, senior author of the study and a wildlife veterinarian at the University of California, Davis. You mentioned the possibility of human transmission of avian influenza. [사진=UC Davis]UC Davis
At least 600,000 wild birds and 50,000 marine mammals (including elephant seals and sea lions) in Argentina, Chile and Peru, and thousands of albatrosses (gulls) in the Malvinas/Falkland Islands are infected with the virus. Enormous damage, like infection, was observed.
Humans are relatively safe, but the possibility increases if the cloning process is repeated several times.
Records from the research team led by Dr. Uhart show that a major outbreak caused by the virus led to a 70% mortality rate among newborn elephant seal calves during the 2023 breeding season on Argentina’s Valdes Peninsula.
Dr Uhart warned that the virus is making its way to Antarctic animals, stressing that a careful approach to monitoring and prevention is needed to avoid serious harm.
This research embodies the “One Health” concept, which recognizes the interconnection between human, livestock, wildlife and environmental health.
The study calls for a unified response from the global public, wildlife, agriculture and healthcare to address the challenges posed by cross-species disease outbreaks.
In summary, this study highlights significant changes in the behavior of the H5N1 avian influenza virus, demonstrating its novel ability to infect and spread among marine mammals in addition to traditional avian hosts.
It also highlights the growing threat of the virus to global wildlife conservation, while also underlining the need for increased surveillance and international cooperation to mitigate its spread.
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