Wild bird monitoring to help predict zoonotic disease risk

Australia’s largest sample collection of wild birds has been established by experts across the country, including a Deakin University researcher. This is what is shown about zoonotic diseases.

The COVID-19 pandemic is the latest zoonotic disease – caused by germs that spread from animals to humans. But an outbreak of monkeypox and Japanese encephalitis means keeping up with viral traffic has never been more important.

Experts say it is only a matter of time before another new infectious virus outbreak strikes. A new virus that combines human influenza and avian influenza is a prime candidate for the next pandemic.

Bird flu is causing problems globally and in Australia. In 2020 alone, nearly half a million Victorian birds were culled following several outbreaks involving three strains of the virus. While avian influenza viruses generally attach themselves to infecting birds, they sometimes make potentially lethal jumps to other animals, including humans.

Fortunately, research to analyze risk factors for such a scenario has already been conducted at Deakin University’s Center for Integrative Ecology (CIE).

‘Historically, all major flu-related pandemics had an avian influenza virus component. The potential spread of pathogens from wild birds to poultry farms and around the world is of great public health importance. My work is aimed at monitoring what happens to birds to keep us informed and minimize our risk,’ said Professor Alfred Deakin Marcel Klaassen from CIE.

Prof Klaassen has established the nation’s largest collection of wild bird samples. The collection of samples combined with a network of researchers across Australia is essential to learn more about the evolution of bird flu and how it is spread.

During the last 12 years, Prof. Klaassen himself sampled more than 15,000 wild birds, including shorebirds, to understand not only where the virus was circulating, but also its international origins.

‘Our research effectively asks: what is the potential for these migratory birds to carry nasty viruses to us from other continents?’

Because new types of viruses continue to circulate globally, Prof. Klaassen explains why getting the annual flu vaccine is so important.

‘Flu shots only protect us for a limited time, not because they stop working, but because the virus itself changes. Every year our immune system needs to be renewed with antibodies to deal with new viruses that emerge.’

Researchers have also analyzed antibody samples to detect whether wild birds have been infected with avian influenza, as well as which strain they have, to dive deeper into the data.

‘Our findings suggest that migratory birds that come to Australia are sometimes infected with the nasty virus, it’s just that they haven’t brought it to our shores.

‘The method [bird flu] the virus develops in the northern hemisphere, it is likely that we will also experience more bird flu outbreaks,’ said Prof. Klaassen.

Having discovered that the epidemiology of avian flu in Australian wild birds is related to rainfall, Prof Klaassen is also investigating what this means for the poultry industry. He uses machine learning and satellite imagery of water in the landscape to identify periods in which farmers should be more vigilant.

It remains to be seen whether the avian flu virus can cause the next pandemic, but researchers are on the pulse of emerging strains in bird populations if the worst happens.

‘This research helps us expand our knowledge of how this virus spreads in wildlife, livestock and ultimately humans. It offers evidence of how we can respond wisely to future outbreaks.’

/University Public Release. Material from this original organization/author may be timely, edited for clarity, style and length. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author. See more here.

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