Japanese researchers have discovered that the H5N1 virus found in cattle adheres more strongly compared to the virus originating from poultry, making this strain of influenza easier to spread.
The Mainichi Shimbun newspaper reported that according to an analysis by a group of Japanese researchers, livestock infected with the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5N1 can more easily transmit to humans compared to poultry hosts.
Virologist Kawaoka stated that there are opinions suggesting the virus’s nature may have changed. (Illustrative image. Source: iStock)
The research team, led by virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka, Director of the Advanced Research Center for Infectious Diseases and Pandemic Prevention in Tokyo, published their findings this week in the online edition of the journal Nature.
The team used receptors from human respiratory cells to test reactions to the H5N1 virus from two host species: cattle and poultry. They found that the virus in cattle adheres more strongly than the poultry-origin virus, making this influenza strain easier to spread.
The researchers also confirmed that the virus originating from cattle exhibits high pathogenicity to mice and ferrets. When ferrets and mice are infected with the cattle-derived H5N1 virus, it replicates throughout their bodies, including the brain and muscles, while also showing high virulence.
Virologist Kawaoka added that there are opinions suggesting the virus’s nature may have changed. There is a possibility that this virus could transmit from human to human in the future.
H5N1 is an influenza A virus that can cause dangerous infectious diseases in poultry. The outbreak has spread globally since the early 2000s, causing mass deaths among chickens in various regions.
According to the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper, a series of cases of the disease in various mammal species have been reported since 2020. Notably, the World Health Organization (WHO) has received reports of 28 cases of H5N1 avian influenza in humans, but no cases of human-to-human transmission have been recorded.
Common symptoms of H5N1 infection include high fever above 38 degrees Celsius, cough, sore throat, muscle pain, and chest pain…
If not treated promptly, the disease can progress rapidly, leading to dangerous respiratory complications (such as acute respiratory distress syndrome, shortness of breath, pneumonia) or neurological effects such as seizures and abnormal mental states…
