Avian influenza

Avian influenza, also known as avian flu or bird flu, is a disease caused by the influenza A virus, which can infect both birds and people.^{[note 1]} It is similar to other types of animal flu in that it is caused by a virus strain that has adapted to a specific host. The type with the greatest risk is highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).

Though influenza A is adapted to birds, it can also stably adapt and sustain person-to-person transmission.^[1] Recent influenza research into the genes of the Spanish flu virus shows it to have genes adapted from both human and avian strains. Pigs can also be infected with human, avian, and swine influenza viruses, allowing for mixtures of genes (reassortment) to create a new virus, which can cause an antigenic shift to a new influenza A virus subtype which most people have little to no immune protection against.^[1]

Avian influenza strains are divided into two types based on their pathogenicity: high pathogenicity (HP) or low pathogenicity (LP).^[2] The most well-known HPAI strain, H5N1, was first isolated from a farmed goose in Guangdong Province, China in 1996, and also has low pathogenic strains found in North America.^[2]^[3] Companion birds in captivity are unlikely to contract the virus and there has been no report of a companion bird with avian influenza since 2003. Pigeons can contract avian strains, but rarely become ill and are incapable of transmitting the virus efficiently to humans or other animals.^[4]

Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).

^ ^a ^b "Spread of Bird Flu Viruses between Animals and People". www.cdc.gov. Retrieved 2022-09-20.
^ ^a ^b "Avian Influenza Low Pathogenic H5N1 vs. Highly Pathogenic H5N1". United States Department of Agriculture. 23 July 2015
^ "H5N1 avian influenza: Timeline of major events" (PDF). World Health Organization. 13 December 2011.
^ Abolnik, Celia (June 2014). "A current review of avian influenza in pigeons and doves (Columbidae)" (PDF). Veterinary Microbiology. 170 (3–4): 181–196. doi:10.1016/j.vetmic.2014.02.042. hdl:2263/39832. ISSN 0378-1135. PMID 24667061.

[:32-2] "Spread of Bird Flu Viruses between Animals and People". www.cdc.gov. Retrieved 2022-09-20.

[:4-3] "Avian Influenza Low Pathogenic H5N1 vs. Highly Pathogenic H5N1". United States Department of Agriculture. 23 July 2015

[:5-4] "H5N1 avian influenza: Timeline of major events" (PDF). World Health Organization. 13 December 2011.

[5] Abolnik, Celia (June 2014). "A current review of avian influenza in pigeons and doves (Columbidae)" (PDF). Veterinary Microbiology. 170 (3–4): 181–196. doi:10.1016/j.vetmic.2014.02.042. hdl:2263/39832. ISSN 0378-1135. PMID 24667061.

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