Evolution and extensive reassortment of H5 influenza viruses isolated from wild birds in China over the past decade

Yanfang Cui; Yulei Li; Minghui Li; Lu Zhao; Deli Wang; Jingman Tian; Xiaoli Bai; Yanpeng Ci; Shanshan Wu; Fei Wang; Xiaomei Chen; Shujie Ma; Zhiyuan Qu; Cen Yang; Liling Liu; Jianzhong Shi; Yuntao Guan; Xianying Zeng; Guobin Tian; Pengfei Cui; Guohua Deng; Yongping Jiang; Pucheng Chen; Jinxiong Liu; Xiurong Wang; Hongmei Bao; Li Jiang; Yasuo Suzuki; Chengjun Li; Yanbing Li; Hualan Chen

doi:10.1080/22221751.2020.1797542

Evolution and extensive reassortment of H5 influenza viruses isolated from wild birds in China over the past decade

Emerg Microbes Infect. 2020 Dec;9(1):1793-1803. doi: 10.1080/22221751.2020.1797542.

Authors

Yanfang Cui¹, Yulei Li¹, Minghui Li¹, Lu Zhao¹, Deli Wang¹, Jingman Tian¹, Xiaoli Bai¹, Yanpeng Ci¹, Shanshan Wu¹, Fei Wang¹, Xiaomei Chen¹, Shujie Ma¹, Zhiyuan Qu¹, Cen Yang¹, Liling Liu¹, Jianzhong Shi¹, Yuntao Guan¹, Xianying Zeng¹, Guobin Tian¹, Pengfei Cui¹, Guohua Deng¹, Yongping Jiang¹, Pucheng Chen¹, Jinxiong Liu¹, Xiurong Wang¹, Hongmei Bao¹, Li Jiang¹, Yasuo Suzuki^{2

3}, Chengjun Li¹, Yanbing Li¹, Hualan Chen¹

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Biotechnology, Harbin Veterinary Research Institute, CAAS, Harbin, People's Republic of China.
² School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Shizuoka, Shizuoka, Japan.
³ College of Life and Health Sciences, Chubu University, Aichi, Japan.

Abstract

Lethal infection of wild birds with different subtypes of H5 viruses continuously occur. To investigate the genetic evolution and pathogenicity of H5 viruses in wild birds, we performed a detailed genetic and biologic analysis of 27 viruses, including H5N1, H5N2, H5N6, and H5N8 subtypes, that were responsible for avian influenza outbreaks in wild birds in China over the past decade. We found that these 27 viruses, bearing different clades/subclades of HA, were complicated reassortants and formed 12 different genotypes. Ten of the viruses tested were highly pathogenic in chickens, but showed distinct pathotypes in ducks and mice. Five of these 10 viruses, which were all from clade2.3.4.4, could bind human-type receptors. Our findings reveal the diversity of the genetic and biologic properties of H5 viruses circulating in wild birds and highlight the need to carefully monitor and evaluate the risks these viruses pose to animal and public health.

Keywords: H5 subtype; Influenza A virus; reassortant; virulence; wild birds.

MeSH terms

Animals
Animals, Wild / virology
Chick Embryo
Chickens / virology
China / epidemiology
Ducks / virology
Evolution, Molecular
Female
Genotype
Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype / genetics
Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype / isolation & purification*
Influenza A Virus, H5N2 Subtype / genetics
Influenza A Virus, H5N2 Subtype / isolation & purification*
Influenza A Virus, H5N8 Subtype / genetics
Influenza A Virus, H5N8 Subtype / isolation & purification*
Influenza in Birds / epidemiology*
Mice
Mice, Inbred BALB C
Reassortant Viruses / genetics

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant number: 31521005], the National Key Research and Development Program of China [2016YFD0500201], the Natural Science Foundation of Heilongjiang Province of China [grant number: ZD2018007], the Central Public-interest Scientific Institution Basal Research Fund for Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences [grant number: 1610302017001], the China Agriculture Research System [grant number: CARS-41-G12].