Innovative tools for monitoring avian influenza viruses in animal populations

• Grant number: 25/09782-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: August 01, 2025
• End date: July 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Microbiology - Biology and Physiology of Microorganisms
• Principal Investigator: Helena Lage Ferreira
• Grantee: João Vitor da Silva Rodrigues
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZEA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Pirassununga , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 21/11968-2 - Center of Technological Plataform on Animal Health, AP.CCD

Abstract

Avian influenza is a zoonotic disease caused by the influenza A virus, capable of causing serious infections in animals, including humans. Three influenza virus subtypes, namely the H5, H7, and H9 subtypes, deserve special attention due to their ability to cause disease in animals and people. As for the H5 subtype, at the end of 2020, a new highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAI) (H5N1) of clade 2.3.4.4 b emerged from a reassortment in Europe (1). This virus has caused the current panzootic, causing high mortality in birds (wild and domestic) and mammals worldwide since 2021 (2). The current situation indicates a large circulation of the virus on all continents. Brazil reported the first virus outbreak in commercial birds in May 2025 (3, 4). In the current wave (2020-2025), the number of mammal species affected by the virus has increased almost 5x, reaching 64 species in four years, when compared to the previous wave, 2003-2019 (5). In Brazil, the first case of the HPAI H5N1 virus was identified in May 2023 in wild birds. From the first virus detection in May 2023 until July 2024, 173 animal outbreaks were reported, of which 168 were birds (domestic and wild) and 5 wild mammals. After 11 months, the virus was identified in production animals (breeding stock) and wild captive birds (4). In the USA, the HPAI H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b virus was identified in goats and dairy cows in Texas after reports of reduced milk production in several states in 2024. Shortly afterward, the virus was identified in cows in eight other US states. The virus has been found mainly in mammary tissue and bovine milk and has also been identified in cats and peridomestic animals (6). In this sense, complementary actions are needed to expand disease surveillance with the avian influenza virus scenario changing rapidly worldwide. This project aims to develop tools to promote virus surveillance in different animal species. To this end, reagents will need to be imported and produced. The tests developed will be compared with those already validated and applied to clinical samples. The project is expected to enhance the independence of reagents for identifying a pathogen of great importance to animal, environmental, and human health. (AU)