Get the latest science news in your RSS reader with ScienceDaily's hourly updated newsfeeds, covering hundreds of topics: Keep up to date with the latest news from ScienceDaily via social networks: Tell us what you think of ScienceDaily -- we welcome both positive and negative comments. More than 40 million egg-laying hens have been culled in the U.S. alone, making it the worst outbreak on record. Experts say the virus, known as Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, or HPAI, has been difficult to contain because it appears to be more prevalent in wild birds now than during previous outbreaks a development that also makes future infections more likely. Avian influenza viruses change slowly over time, but the right mutation could make them more transmissible in people and other species, says Ian Barr, deputy director of the World Health . All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. Learn what to do if you have contact with infected birds and become sick. Some strains, like the version of H5N1 that is currently spreading, are frequently. In agricultural poultry flocks, if a few birds test positive for H5N1, the whole flock is killed regardless of symptoms or infection status. Hagerman warns that in a time of inflationary pressure and supply-chain snags, it can be hard to directly link a price hike to the virus. By October 2022, the disease had resulted in 31 reported wild bird mass mortalities, accounting for an estimated 33,504 wild bird detections in the U.S. and Canada. To receive email updates about this page, enter your email address: We take your privacy seriously. Which cells influenza infects is partially dictated by the specific receptor that it binds. Both human and bird influenza viruses use receptors called sialic acids that are common on the surfaces of cells. The current wave of H5N1 avian fluan influenza type A virus that first emerged in Chinese poultry in 1996 and has been circulating worldwide ever sincearrived in . Is it a vaccine? Ask the Expert: Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) Viruses. In January, Insider's George Glover explained the egg crisis facing Americans as prices surged by almost 60% in 2022 due to the influenza outbreak. The virus of concern in this outbreak is a Eurasian H5N1 HPAI virus that causes high mortality and severe clinical signs in domesticated poultry. During past H5N1 bird flu virus outbreaks that have occurred . LPAI can cause mild to moderate disease in poultry, and usually little to no clinical signs of illness in wild birds. The U.S. outbreak, which began in February, infected flocks of poultry and non-poultry birds across 46 states, USDA data show. Yuko Sato, The Conversation With all those replications, it can accumulate a lot of different changes. What you need to know about the avian influenza outbreak The process is much like dealing with a human pandemic. Back when the avian flu outbreak had affected 24 states and some 24 million commercial birds, only eight cases had been confirmed in commercial broiler chickens. Outbreaks have become more common due to the high density and frequent movement of flocks from intensive poultry production. As it is now, this is the largest animal emergency that the USDA has faced in this country, said GinoLorenzoni, an assistant professor of poultry science and avian health at Pennsylvania State University. Experts found the H5N1 Eurasian strain, a highly pathogenic avian influenza virus type. A man weighs and checks his flock of white turkeys at his family's farm last year in Townsend, Del. CDC has been comparing the properties of current H5N1 bird flu viruses to past H5N1 bird flu viruses and has found that current H5N1 bird flu viruses detected in the U.S. during late 2021 and 2022 are different from earlier H5N1 bird flu viruses. An outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in chicken and turkey flocks has spread across 24 U.S. states since it was first detected in Indiana on Feb. 8, 2022. "It's difficult to estimate how many birds are truly affected across wild populations, but we're seeing dramatic disease impacts in raptors, sea birds, and colonial nesting birds. You can review and change the way we collect information below. Cookies used to enable you to share pages and content that you find interesting on CDC.gov through third party social networking and other websites. World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use. The CDC states that like any poultry or eggs, heating food to an internal temperature of 165F kills any bacteria and viruses present, including HPAI viruses. That was the case in the 2014-2015 outbreak which came when Hagerman worked at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, or APHIS. Signals that could raise the public health risk might include multiple reports of H5N1 virus infections in people from exposure to birds, or identification of spread from one infected person to a close contact. Many migratory bird species travel thousands of miles between continents, posing a continuing risk of AI virus transmission. An outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza that started in 2021 has become the largest bird flu outbreak in history, both in the U.S. and worldwide. How do we track it in wild birds? Among these, H5N1 and H7N9 viruses have caused the majority of infections in people. Months earlier, the bird flu outbreak drove the cost of turkey meat to record highs. Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses can severely affect domestic animal, wildlife, and sometimes human health.. Outbreaks of Eurasian lineage highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses have been impacting domestic poultry and wild bird populations in Europe and Asia since August 2020. No known human-to-human spread has occurred with the A (H5N1) virus that is currently circulating in birds in the United States and globally. These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. Better known as bird flu, avian influenza is a family of highly contagious viruses that are not harmful to wild birds that transmit it, but are deadly to domesticated birds. An outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in chicken and turkey flocks has spread across 24 U.S. states since it was first detected in Indiana on Feb. 8, 2022. Liu Guanguan/China News Service via Getty Images By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider HPAI viruses cause high mortality in poultry, and occasionally in some wild birds. It is true that the farmed minks were confined in close quarters, like chickens on a poultry farm, so that may have contributed. More reports poured in over the following weeks and months, raising alarms as the virus spread to more states. Most people who have contracted H5N1 have gotten it directly from interacting with infected poultry specifically chickens, turkeys, ducks and geese, which often are raised in close quarters on large commercial farms. WASHINGTON The Biden administration, keeping a watchful eye on an outbreak of avian influenza that has led to the deaths of tens of millions of chickens and is driving up the . Previous outbreaks of avian influenza -- whether low pathogenic virus that is endemic in the U.S. or highly pathogenic H5N8 in 2015 -- typically occurred in the fall, which meant farmers could . Record avian flu outbreak is threatening North America's - Science But the calculations might change if the virus is determined to be endemic in wild birds or in a geographic area. U.S. experts had been bracing for an outbreak, watching successful strains of the H5N1 influenza virus proliferate in Europe and elsewhere. Avian influenza (AI) is caused by an influenza type A virus which can infect poultry (such as chickens, turkeys, pheasants, quail, domestic ducks, geese, and guinea fowl) and wild birds (especially waterfowl). If you need to go back and make any changes, you can always do so by going to our Privacy Policy page. Bird flu is driving up the price of more than just eggs and poultry Well, whod have thought it? But lab tests soon revealed something scarier: a deadly avian influenza virus named H5N1. Learn more about Friends of the NewsHour. Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses. Efforts to prevent infections in commercial and backyard flocks are ongoing, but slowing the outbreak has been challenging because the virus seems to have gained a foothold in species of wild birds, said Biao He, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. Eggs on a shelf at Pioneer Supermarkets in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Thursday. This can happen when virus is in the air (in droplets or possibly dust) and a person breathes it in, or possibly when a person touches something that has virus on it and then touches their mouth, eyes or nose. An outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza that started in 2021 has become the largest bird flu outbreak in history, both in the U.S. and worldwide. The new H5N1 strain has already killed over 58 million chickens, turkeys, and other birds, Reuters reported. "This time we didn't see that virus circulation going down to zero in our wild bird population" over the summer, Hagerman says. CDC does not currently recommend any travel restrictions related to bird flu to countries affected by bird flu in poultry or people. We are also mammals. A flock of pintail ducks flying in winter. Thank you. "When the virus came over into the Americas, it started to interact with the viruses that we have in our wild birds here," picking up different combinations of other genes, Webby says. "So, yes, we certainly saw an increase in turkey prices in this holiday season," Hagerman says, "but not as much as we might have anticipated given the extent of this outbreak.". ". The US is no stranger to the impact of the disease, with the H5N8 strain having led to the culling of 50 million birds in 2015. 2022-2023 Detections of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in - USDA USDA APHIS | Avian Influenza ScienceDaily. People with job-related or recreational exposures to birds or infected mammals should take. A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda. The data also reveals a shift from a seasonal to a year-round disease. Avian flu is ravaging farmers and the markets. Sign up for notifications from Insider! The more than 50,000 mink at the facility were killed and their carcasses destroyed. Sporadic human cases of H5N1 reported with H5N1 viruses circulating in birds since 2021 have occurred following exposure to infected poultry. Where do we direct our funds for maximum benefit? Avian influenza (AI) is a contagious virus that affects all birds. Right now, the best way people can protect themselves from H5N1 is to avoid contact with infected birds. as well as other partner offers and accept our. Avian flu outbreak in U.S. worst on record, over 50 million birds dead The average cost of a dozen eggs rose by 59% last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, with prices more than doubling in West Virginia and six states in the upper Midwest. Six main hemagglutinin (HA) subtypes of bird flu viruses have infected people to cause acute respiratory illness (H3, H5, H6, H7, H9, and H10 viruses). What is the World Economic Forum doing about fighting pandemics? With the recent detections of the Eurasian H5 strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in wild birds and domestic poultry in the United States, bird owners should review their biosecurity practices and stay vigilant to protect poultry and pet birds from this disease. The researchers hope their work will bring key players to the table to consider the next steps. By the end of December, more than 43 million egg-laying hens were lost to the disease itself or to depopulation since the . *Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) and Low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) are described in the Classification of bird flu viruses section. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance. Since December 2021, 11 human cases of H5N1 have been reported globally. Turkey farms account for more than 70% of the commercial poultry farms infected in the outbreak, the USDA said. These cases do not change the human risk assessment to the general public, which CDC considers to be low. But when domesticated poultry, such as chickens and turkeys, come in direct or indirect contact with feces of infected wild birds, they become infected and start to show symptoms, such as depression, coughing and sneezing and sudden death. Nearly 58 million birds from commercial and backyard flocks have been wiped out in the U.S. since last February, according to the U.S. Department of Agricultures Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. And since its arrival in North America, the avian influenza virus has continued to change. The first reason that so much attention is being paid to bird flu right now is that currently H5N1 is causing the largest bird pandemic ever recorded. And while the risk of the virus spilling over into humans remains low, scientists say communities will feel the consequences of such a serious and lengthy outbreak for months to come. The paper was published April 19, 2023, in the journal Conservation Biology. By University of Colorado Boulder Wild birds like ducks transmit the virus, known as highly pathogenic avian influenza, through their feces, feathers or direct contact with poultry. The same strain had caused a wave of bird flu outbreaks across Europe and Asia. CDCand USDA have developed guidance for specific audiences, including the, A handout containing information and guidance for people exposed to birds with bird flu is available at, More information about how to protect yourself against bird flu is. Over the centuries, some of these avian influenza viruses have been passed from birds to humans and other mammalian species, although this is a relatively rare event. Experts say poultry farms should be credited with limiting the virus as much as they have, hailing the success of surveillance and biosecurity programs.
