UK researchers: Watch for emerging, more infectious strains of avian flu virus.

 

Poultry producers worldwide should be on the alert for emerging strains of avian influenza virus that are either more transmissible or cause more severe disease than prior strains. 

 According to researchers led by The Pirbright Institute in the UK, infection with two strains of avian flu also could lead to the emergence of a new virus strain with the potential to jump from birds to humans.

 One study, published in the Journal of Virology, was conducted after a low-pathogenic H7N9 strain of avian influenza virus emerged in 2013 through genetic reassortment between an H9N2 strain and other low-pathogenic strains. 

The new H7N9 strain caused inapparent clinical disease in chickens, but zoonotic transmission caused severe and fatal disease in humans. 

Pirbright researchers looked at a natural reassortment scenario between H7N9 and a G1-lineage H9N2 virus predominant in India and across the Middle East. 

 Shared genetic information.

 According to Pirbright researchers, the study shows that avian influenza virus strains H9N2 and H7N9 can share genetic information to create an H9N9 strain with the potential to cause more severe disease in poultry and pose a threat to human health.

Avian influenza viruses can persist in footbaths and manure.

Avian influenza viruses can persist in footbaths and manure.Growers shouldn’t assume the disinfectants they use in footbaths are effective against avian influenza (AI), indicates a study from the University of California–Davis. Researchers conducted a survey about biosecurity practices in California and then used the information to design experiments to test the effectiveness of footbath disinfectants against AI. They also evaluated the longevity of AI viruses under different conditions. “Surprisingly,” they say, quaternary ammonia and quaternary ammonia plus glutaraldehyde-based footbaths did not eliminate highly pathogenic H5N8 or low-pathogenic H6N2 particles on boots. However, a chlorine-based granulated disinfectant was able to destroy the virus, say Rüdiger Hauck* and colleagues. To evaluate the longevity of AI viruses in litter and feces, they seeded different bedding samples from commercial layer, broiler and turkey production units with the same two AI viruses. Live H5N8 particles in layer feces remained for at least 96 hours, compared to less than 60 hours in broiler and turkey bedding. However, H6N2 low-pathogenic viruses persisted less than 24 hours in all the different substrates. This knowledge may help producers determine effective litter treatments to destroy AI viruses in the bedding material.

Avian flu: Virus with an Eggshell.

Avian flu: Virus with an Eggshell. Avian flu can be transmitted from birds to humans; transmission among humans, however, is limited. The reason may be an eggshell-like mineral layer that the virus acquires due to the high calcium concentration in the intestines of birds. As reported by Chinese researchers in the journal Angewandte Chemie, these mineralized viruses are significantly more infectious and, in addition, more robust and heat stable than the native viruses. Avian flu is a highly infectious disease among birds that has developed into a serious threat to human health. Close contact with diseased birds or their feces is considered to be the primary source of infections in humans. Transmission between humans is limited, however, which indicates that these viruses cannot directly infect humans. Previously it was assumed that these viruses crossed the species barrier as a result of mutation or recombination with another pathogen. More recent results demonstrate that avian flu viruses isolated from infected humans have the same gene sequences as those from birds.Avian flu: Virus with an Eggshell. So how is it that humans catch the disease from birds? Researchers working with Ruikang Tang at Zhejiang University (Hangzhou, China) claim that it is because the viruses acquire a mineral "shell" in the bird intestines. They discovered that viruses can become mineralized under calcium-rich conditions. Naturally, the digestive tract of birds--the primary location of avian flu viruses--provides just such a calcium-rich environment, so that the birds can make egg shells.Avian flu: Virus with an Eggshell. Experiments with a solution that imitates the bird intestine environment allowed the researchers to demonstrate that 5 to 6 nm shells of a calcium phosphate mineral form around H9N2 and H1N1 viruses. In both cell cultures and mice, these mineralized viruses proved to be significantly more infectious--and deadly--than the native viruses. In humans, avian flu viruses infect the airways and are then found in bodily fluids, where the calcium concentration is too low for mineralization.

DIVERSAY SOLUTIONS LTD @ THE FARMER'S BAZAAR.

BIO SECURITY still the only way to keep your animals safe. Diversay show cased their bio security products such as; Biokleen, Citramax,Neodine,Tetrasan,Terminator111 and viracid-s.

DISINFECTANTS USED IN BIRD FLU OUTBREAK.

Disinfectants that are used for bio security in poultry are enormous but only 2 disinfectants have been proven to kill the bird flu virus.These disinfectants are virkon and virocid, they have been used in various outbreak in numerous countries with 100% efficacy. Virocid is the world’s most powerful disinfectant, as it achieves 99.9% microbial eradication It is all about avoiding pathogens building up to dangerously high levels. At these high levels, the pathogens can cause serious health problems for the animals and substantial economic losses to the farmer. It is a never-ending task that requires a rigorous approach, Bacteria, viruses and fungi will find a stronghold in these areas and finally spread disease to people, poultry, transport, vermin, insects etc. that are passing by these infectious hot spots. Virocid is an extremely concentrated disinfectant with a synergistic composition of four active ingredients. It has proven records in preventing and fighting disease outbreaks for many years: IB, IBD, avian influenza, Enterococcus, Salmonella, Aspergillus. It is amazingly effective at very low dilutions - 0.25 to 0.50 per cent - against all microorganisms: bacteria, viruses, fungi and spores. Virocid is hospital-graded according to the EPA registration in the US. Moreover, Virocid has a long residual action and can be applied in a versatile way (spraying, (hot) fogging, foaming) on surfaces, boot, dips, vehicles and equipment. virocid used in various ways such as horticulture,hospital,food processing unit,animal healthcare and personal hygiene