H5N1亜型高病原性鳥インフルエンザと野生鳥類

抄録

H5N1 subtype of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) has been giving serious damage to the poultry industry since 2004 in Japan. Worst of all, from the end of November 2010 to March 2011, there were 24 outbreaks of HPAI among chicken farms and during the same period, HPAIV was isolated from the carcasses of 63 wild birds. The role of wild birds in spreading HPAIV has been suspected but controversial. This report reviews recent literatures regarding the epidemic cases of HPAIV in wild birds in Asia and Europe, the experimental infection studies using wild birds, and the satellite tracking studies of wild waterfowl in outbreak area. The epidemic cases showed common characteristic that the epidemics recur in the similar situation, i.e., among the same species, in the same area, at the same time of the year, for a limited period of about two months. These characteristics have been explained with the sensitivity difference among bird species and the behaviors of birds. From this study, it is concluded that the collaborative research from the views of both bird ecologists and virologists is an essential tool to elucidate the ecology of HPAIV.