Abstract Title
Avian Influenza is a Social Network Problem
Abstract
The repeated unpredictable emergence of highly pathogenic avian influenzas (HPAI) in recent years has highlighted the complexity of forecasting disease spread within their native host systems. This complexity is magnified among wild birds, many species of which are natural reservoirs of influenza A viruses, and which exhibit diverse ecologies and social behaviors, confounding attempts to map transmission routes. The ongoing H5N1 panzootic has underscored the cost of neglecting this knowledge gap, prompting the addition in June 2024 of influenza A viruses to the World Health Organization’s list of pathogens of pandemic risk4, and calls for research into the role of bird migration in their spread. Despite identification of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza viruses nearly 75 years ago, the transmission pathways among wild animals remain incompletely described. We propose the use of social networks, within phylodynamic modelling, for better surveillance, prediction and prioritization of HPAI.
Co-Author(s)
Jamie Dunning, Josh Firth & Alastair I Ward.
Uo Leeds, UK
JF Oxford U, UK
Abstract Category
Transmission pathways, pathobiology, immune responses