HWN Suggests

This Cow and Pig Influenza Virus Could Infect Humans: What We Know So Far

Influenza D, a relatively recent addition to the alphabet of flu viruses, most commonly infects cattle. But experts have their eye on the threat it could potentially pose to humans. Veterinarians first identified influenza D in pigs in 2011 and later sleuthed out the virus’s primary host: cattle. Scientists have since been watching for any signs that this bovine flu is infecting humans, as flus from birds and pigs sometimes do. There’s currently no definitive proof, but there are worrying hints that human infection is possible—and that if luck favored the virus on a couple key fronts, it could begin spreading among people.

read full article

Featured

 Emerging Influenza D Virus Threat: What We Know so Far!

Influenza viruses, since time immemorial, have been the major respiratory pathogen known to infect a wide variety of animals, birds and reptiles with established lineages. They belong to the family Orthomyxoviridae and cause acute respiratory illness often during local outbreaks or seasonal epidemics and occasionally during pandemics. Recent studies have identified a new genus within the Orthomyxoviridae family. This newly identified pathogen, D/swine/Oklahoma/1334/2011 (D/OK), first identified in pigs with influenza-like illness was classified as the influenza D virus (IDV) which is distantly related to the previously characterized human influenza C virus. Several other back-to-back studies soon suggested cattle as the natural reservoir and possible involvement of IDV in the bovine respiratory disease complex was established. Not much is known about its likelihood to cause disease in humans, but it definitely poses a potential threat as an emerging pathogen in cattle-workers.

 Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats from Influenza D and Canine Coronavirus HuPn-2018

First detected and characterized in pigs with signs of respiratory illness in 2011, much has been learned about influenza D virus (IDV) since its first recognition (7,8). Like influenza A, B, and C viruses, IDVs are enveloped RNA viruses having segmented genomes that can change through reassortment, recombination, and mutation. IDVs belong to the genus Deltainfluenzavirus of the virus family Orthomyxoviridae.

Articles of Interest

Influenza D Remains Somewhat Mysterious

Work has shown though, that although the virus can infect pigs, cattle likely serve as the primary reservoir for influenza D and it probably plays a role in the bovine respiratory disease (BRD) complex.

A new flu is spilling over from cows to people in the U.S. How worried should we be?

Hause immediately thought that the regular flu virus was infecting the pigs. "We expected to find influenza A," he says, "because that's the most common problem." It's also the same type of virus that often causes the seasonal flu in people. But when he and his colleagues grew the virus in the lab, they quickly realized they were wrong. Hause was shocked by what he saw. "I thought, 'What is this thing? We've never seen anything like this before,' " he says. "Right away, we were concerned that this virus could infect people."

Cattle the Primary Reservoir for New Virus - Influenza D

The committee officially announced a new genus, Orthomyxovirdae, with a single species, Influenza D virus, because of its distinctness from other influenza types—A, B and C. The virus was first discovered by South Dakota State University researcher Ben Hause back in 2011 when he isolated the virus from a diseased pig. He later found that cattle were the primary reservoir for influenza D and identified and characterised the new virus as part of his doctoral research under professor Feng Li's tutelage.

Influenza D (Flu) Explained: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment (USA)

You may have heard there are “four types of flu.” That’s true—A, B, C, and D. However, Influenza D primarily affects cattle and is not known to cause illness in people, according to CDC and WHO.

Influenza D in Domestic and Wild Animals

Influenza D virus (IDV) infections have been observed in animals worldwide, confirmed through both serological and molecular tests, as well as virus isolation. IDV possesses unique properties that distinguish it from other influenza viruses, primarily attributed to the hemagglutinin-esterase fusion (HEF) surface glycoprotein, which determines the virus' tropism and wide host range. Cattle are postulated to be the reservoir of IDV, and the virus is identified as one of the causative agents of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) syndrome.

Influenza D Virus

Influenza D is the only type of influenza virus that mainly affects cattle with frequent spillover to other species. Since the initial description of influenza D virus (IDV) in 2011, the virus has been found to circulate among cattle and swine populations worldwide. Research conducted during the past several years has led to an increased understanding of this novel influenza virus with bovines as a reservoir.

Influenza D virus: a potential threat for humans?

Influenza D virus (IDV) is a novel influenza virus, first isolated from an ailing swine in 2011 in Oklahoma. Several studies have isolated IDV in cattle from multiple geographic areas, suggesting cattle as a possible primary natural reservoir for the virus. To date, few studies have been performed on human samples and there is no conclusive evidence on the ability of the virus to infect humans.

Meet the new virus named influenza D

Three types of influenza viruses affect people, called Type A, Type B and Type C. The new fourth type has, so far, only been shown to affect cattle. The new virus was isolated in 2011. Although the virus was isolated from a pig, the reservoir for infection was traced back to a cow. This made influenza Type D the first known influenza virus to affect cattle. The discovery was made by Professor Feng Li and one of his doctoral students, Ben Hause. Noting that the virus was atypical, the U.S. National Institutes of Health provided a grant to allow for further examination.

Novel Influenza D virus: Epidemiology, pathology, evolution and biological characteristics

In 2011, a new virus was isolated from pigs with influenza-like symptoms and subsequently also from cattle, which are the main reservoir of the virus. It is similar to Influenza C virus (ICV), a (predominantly) human pathogen, causing respiratory disease in children. Since the virus is unable to reassort with ICV (and based on several other criteria as discussed in the text) it is now officially named as Influenzavirus D (IDV), a new genus of the Orthomyxoviridae.

Viruses: Influenza D in Domestic and Wild Animals

When we discuss human influenza viruses, Influenza A and Influenza B pretty much dominate the field. Less well known are Influenza C viruses and Influenza D viruses, both of which can occur in swine and cattle, but appear to have limited abilities to infect humans.