The World Health Organization recently raised a warning that the recent surge in bird flu outbreaks among mammals could help the virus spread more easily among humans.
Europe has been gripped by its worst-ever outbreak of bird flu since late 2021, and North and South America have also experienced severe outbreaks. This has led to the culling of tens of millions of poultry worldwide, many with the H5N1 strain of the virus, which first emerged in 1996.
However, there has recently been a worrying spike in infections in mammals. “Avian influenza viruses normally spread among birds, but the increasing number of H5N1 avian influenza detections among mammals – which are biologically closer to humans than birds are – raises concern that the virus might adapt to infect humans more easily,” the WHO said in a statement.
“In addition, some mammals may act as mixing vessels for influenza viruses, leading to the emergence of new viruses that could be more harmful to animals and humans.”
Outbreaks have been reported in 26 species, including farmed mink in Spain and sea lions in Chile. H5N1 was recently detected in cats in Poland.
Infections in humans, which are usually the result of direct or indirect exposure to infected live or dead poultry or contaminated environments, can cause severe disease with a high mortality rate.
“The virus does not appear to be able to transmit from one person to another easily, but vigilance is needed to identify any evolution in the virus that can change that,” said WHO pandemic preparedness chief Sylvie Briand.
Experts were looking for changes that could be more dangerous to humans, and urged countries to boost their monitoring capabilities, she added.
“This is especially important as the virus is now affecting countries with limited prior experience in avian-flu surveillance,” Briand said.
“The epidemiology of H5N1 continues to rapidly evolve,” said the FAO’s chief veterinary officer Keith Sumption as he pleaded for timely sharing of genetic sequences to monitor for changes, resulting in better risk assessment and disease control.
In a world that has just emerged, battered and bruised, from a pandemic that originated from animals, we can only hope that the human race has learned its lessons from the devastation wrought by COVID-19. Continued vigilance, monitoring, and the timely sharing of information among nations will be critical when it comes to bird flu and other diseases that have the potential to spark another pandemic that humanity cannot afford.*
