Pandemic potential of avian influenza A (H7N9) viruses

Tokiko Watanabe; Shinji Watanabe; Eileen A Maher; Gabriele Neumann; Yoshihiro Kawaoka

doi:10.1016/j.tim.2014.08.008

Pandemic potential of avian influenza A (H7N9) viruses

Trends Microbiol. 2014 Nov;22(11):623-31. doi: 10.1016/j.tim.2014.08.008. Epub 2014 Sep 25.

Authors

Tokiko Watanabe¹, Shinji Watanabe², Eileen A Maher³, Gabriele Neumann³, Yoshihiro Kawaoka⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 575 Science Drive, Madison, WI 53711, USA; ERATO Infection-Induced Host Responses Project, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Saitama 332-0012, Japan; Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan.
² ERATO Infection-Induced Host Responses Project, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Saitama 332-0012, Japan; Laboratory of Veterinary Microbiology, Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Miyazaki, Miyazaki, 889-2192, Japan.
³ Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 575 Science Drive, Madison, WI 53711, USA.
⁴ Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 575 Science Drive, Madison, WI 53711, USA; ERATO Infection-Induced Host Responses Project, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Saitama 332-0012, Japan; Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan; Department of Special Pathogens, International Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan. Electronic address: kawaokay@svm.vetmed.wisc.edu.

Abstract

Avian influenza viruses rarely infect humans, but the recently emerged avian H7N9 influenza viruses have caused sporadic infections in humans in China, resulting in 440 confirmed cases with 122 fatalities as of 16 May 2014. In addition, epidemiologic surveys suggest that there have been asymptomatic or mild human infections with H7N9 viruses. These viruses replicate efficiently in mammals, show limited transmissibility in ferrets and guinea pigs, and possess mammalian-adapting amino acid changes that likely contribute to their ability to infect mammals. In this review, we summarize the characteristic features of the novel H7N9 viruses and assess their pandemic potential.

Keywords: avian influenza H7N9 viruses; pandemic potential; transmission.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Animals
Birds
China
Disease Transmission, Infectious
Ferrets
Guinea Pigs
Humans
Influenza A Virus, H7N9 Subtype / growth & development*
Influenza A Virus, H7N9 Subtype / isolation & purification
Influenza A Virus, H7N9 Subtype / pathogenicity
Influenza in Birds / transmission*
Influenza in Birds / virology*
Influenza, Human / epidemiology*
Influenza, Human / transmission
Influenza, Human / virology*
Orthomyxoviridae Infections / veterinary
Orthomyxoviridae Infections / virology
Pandemics
Zoonoses / transmission*
Zoonoses / virology*

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding