confirm the presence of avian influenza virus

Availability highly pathogenic avian influenza virus first discovered in some specimens dead birds in Antarctica, which was confirmed by researchers from the Severo Ochoa Center for Molecular Biology of the Supreme Scientific Research Council (CSIC). A team of scientists led by CSIC researcher Antonio Alcamy, who works at the Spanish Antarctic base Gabriel de Castilla on Deception Island, confirmed the presence of the virus last year. 24 February.

In particular, the virus was discovered in two samples of dead skuas, which were found by Argentine scientists in the vicinity of the Argentine Antarctic base Primavera. This find, according to the researchers, will allow national polar programs “be prepared” to avoid human transmission and prevent people from becoming infected.

As the CSIC clarifies, the samples were obtained using “maximum protective measures to avoid transmission of the virus to humans. Once the samples were collected, the viruses present were immediately inactivated so they could be safely studied.” Analyzes consisting of specific PCR for vinfluenza virus and H5 subtypeshowed “conclusively” that the birds were infected with the H5 subtype of avian influenza and at least one of the dead birds contained highly pathogenic avian influenza virus.

This discovery demonstrates for the first time that a highly pathogenic avian influenza virus has reached Antarctica. despite the distance and natural barriers separating it from other continents. This discovery could also explain bird deaths recorded during Antarctic summer. The variant has been found in many places in the northern hemisphere and, since last summer, in the southern hemisphere. The virus has recently been described from sub-Antarctic islands, but to date, although significant mortality of some birds has been reported in Antarctica, no country has demonstrated the presence of the virus in Antarctica.

This confirmation was made possible thanks to international cooperation, especially with Argentina, and the coordination of the Spanish Polar Committee. The international Antarctic organizations that collaborated were the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) and the Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs (COMNAP), which were informed of the discoveries as required by the Antarctic Treaty.

Last July World Health Organization (WHO)warned that bird flu “may mutate and pose an obvious danger to humans”“Avian influenza viruses typically spread between birds, but increasing detections of the H5N1 subtype of the virus in mammals, which are biologically closer to humans than birds, are raising concerns that the virus may adapt to infect humans more easily. Some mammals can serve as a “crucible” for influenza viruses, leading to the emergence of new viruses that can be more harmful to animals and humans.

Goose/Guangdong lineage of H5N1 avian influenza viruses first appeared in 1996 and has been causing outbreaks in birds ever since.With. Since 2020, a variant of these viruses, belonging to the clade 2.3.4.4b of H5 viruses, has caused an unprecedented number of deaths of wild birds and poultry in many countries in Africa, Asia and Europe. The virus spread to North America in 2021 and to Central and South America in 2022.

In 2022 67 countries on five continents have notified WHO of outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza caused by the H5N1 virus in poultry and wild birds., resulting in the death or slaughter of more than 131 million poultry on affected farms and villages. In 2023, 14 more countries reported outbreaks, mostly in the Americas, as the disease continued to spread.