Identification of H2N3 influenza A viruses from swine in the United States

davidd submitted, created time 1 year 2 days (www.pnas.org)

In this report, they isolate and characterize genetically similar avian/swine virus reassortant H2N3 influenza A viruses isolated from diseased swine from two farms in the United States. The H2N3 viruses were able to cause disease in experimentally infected swine and mice without prior adaptation. In addition, the swine H2N3 virus was infectious and highly transmissible in swine and ferrets. Taken together, these findings suggest that the H2N3 virus has undergone some adaptation to the mammalian host and that their spread should be very closely monitored.

1 comment | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: drug-resistant viruses drug resistance adaptive radiation viruses influenza pigs swine H2N3 influenza A viruses