Abstract Title
Longitudinal genomic characterisation of H5 Avian Influenza viruses in Georgia 2019-2024
Abstract
Avian Influenza viruses (AIV’s) are of constant global concern, with new outbreaks not only causing massive ecological damage to susceptible populations, but also economic repercussions from the loss of livestock. Situated within the Caucasus region, Georgia is a convergence point between the Central Asian, East Africa/West Asia, and the Black Sea-Mediterranean avian flyways. Populated by thousands of birds from various species for both breeding and overwintering, Georgia not only provides favourable conditions for the emergence of novel AIV’s, but its positioning within multiple flyways enables efficient dispersal of such potential novel viruses. This study aims to characterise AIV dynamics within Europe with Georgia as a focal point, and using genomic analysis assess how Georgia has been involved with European AIV dynamics from 2019 to 2024, through providing ecological analysis of the different host groups involved, and overlaying this data with sequence analysis from further data pulled from GISAID during the same period. Phylogenetic analysis of this data revealed a novel strain first appearing around March 2024, mostly containing segments from a well characterised H5N1 virus, but also a PB2 gene assimilated from another H5 virus, with further phylodynamic analyses ongoing. This work highlights the importance of AIV surveillance work in Georgia as a key potential emergence site of novel AIVs. Further longitudinal sampling is ongoing and will increase our understanding of AIV dynamics, emergence and dispersal, particularly related to the connectivity with Western Europe
and Eastern Asia.
and Eastern Asia.
Co-Author(s)
Matthew Billinge-Jones, Alexander M.P. Byrne, Nicola S. Lewis
Abstract Category
Notable outbreaks, field and molecular epidemiology, and surveillance in wild birds