Pathogenicity in Chickens and Turkeys of a 2021 United States H5N1 Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Clade 2.3.4.4b Wild Bird Virus Compared to Two Previous H5N8 Clade 2.3.4.4 Viruses
Mary J. Pantin-Jackwood,
Erica Spackman,
Christina Leyson,
Sungsu Youk,
Scott A. Lee,
Linda M. Moon,
Mia K. Torchetti,
Mary L. Killian,
Julianna B. Lenoch,
Darrell R. Kapczynski,
David E. Swayne,
David L. Suarez
Affiliations
Mary J. Pantin-Jackwood
Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Unit, Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
Erica Spackman
Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Unit, Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
Christina Leyson
Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Unit, Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
Sungsu Youk
Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Unit, Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
Scott A. Lee
Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Unit, Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
Linda M. Moon
Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Unit, Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
Mia K. Torchetti
National Veterinary Services Laboratories, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA 50010, USA
Mary L. Killian
National Veterinary Services Laboratories, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA 50010, USA
Julianna B. Lenoch
Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Disease Program, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Fort Collins, CO 80521, USA
Darrell R. Kapczynski
Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Unit, Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
David E. Swayne
Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Unit, Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
David L. Suarez
Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Unit, Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
Highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses (HPAIVs) of subtype H5 of the Gs/GD/96 lineage remain a major threat to poultry due to endemicity in wild birds. H5N1 HPAIVs from this lineage were detected in 2021 in the United States (U.S.) and since then have infected many wild and domestic birds. We evaluated the pathobiology of an early U.S. H5N1 HPAIV (clade 2.3.4.4b, 2021) and two H5N8 HPAIVs from previous outbreaks in the U.S. (clade 2.3.4.4c, 2014) and Europe (clade 2.3.4.4b, 2016) in chickens and turkeys. Differences in clinical signs, mean death times (MDTs), and virus transmissibility were found between chickens and turkeys. The mean bird infective dose (BID50) of the 2021 H5N1 virus was approximately 2.6 log10 50% embryo infective dose (EID50) in chickens and 2.2 log10 EID50 in turkeys, and the virus transmitted to contact-exposed turkeys but not chickens. The BID50 for the 2016 H5N8 virus was also slightly different in chickens and turkeys (4.2 and 4.7 log10 EID50, respectively); however, the BID50 for the 2014 H5N8 virus was higher for chickens than turkeys (3.9 and ~0.9 log10 EID50, respectively). With all viruses, turkeys took longer to die (MDTs of 2.6–8.2 days for turkeys and 1–4 days for chickens), which increased the virus shedding period and facilitated transmission to contacts.
