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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Vet. Sci.
Sec. Veterinary Infectious Diseases
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1446577

Molecular epidemiology of avian influenza viruses and avian coronaviruses in environmental samples from migratory bird inhabitants in Bangladesh

Provisionally accepted
Most Nahida Khatun Most Nahida Khatun 1Shadia Tasnim Shadia Tasnim 1Md. Riabbel Hossain Md. Riabbel Hossain 1Md. Ziaur Rahman Md. Ziaur Rahman 2Muhammad Tofazzal Hossain Muhammad Tofazzal Hossain 3Emdadul H. Chowdhury Emdadul H. Chowdhury 1Rokshana Parvin Rokshana Parvin 1*
  • 1 Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh
  • 2 Molecular Radiobiology and Biodosimetry Division, Institute of Food and Radiation Biology, Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Savar, Dhaka-1349, Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh
  • 3 Department of Microbiology and Hygiene, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Dhaka, Bangladesh

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Migratory birds are the natural reservoir for major respiratory viruses like the avian influenza virus (AIV), and the avian coronavirus (AvCoV). Transmission of these viruses from migratory birds to domestic birds increases the prevalence of those diseases that cause severe economic and public health concerns in Bangladesh. The study focused on active surveillance of major respiratory viral pathogens in migratory birds, molecular identification of the viruses, and their phylogenetic origin.To conduct this study, 850 environmental samples (830 fecal samples, 10 soil samples, and 10 water samples) were collected in three consecutive winter seasons from three divisions (Dhaka, Sylhet, and Mymensingh) and pooled according to collection year and locations, resulting in a total of 184 tested samples. Using gene-specific primers and probes in TaqMan-and SYBR-Green-based RT-qPCR assays, samples were screened for AIV and AvCoV, respectively. Out of the 184 pooled samples, 37 were found to be positive for these respiratory pathogens. Furthermore, out of the 37 (20.11%) positive respiratory pathogens, 11.96% were AIV (n = 22) and 8.15% were AvCoV (n = 15). For the first time in Bangladesh, AIV H4N2, H4N6, and AvCoVs have been found in fecal samples from migratory birds through surveillance. Phylogenetic analyses of the HA and NA genes of AIV and the polymerase gene (Orf 1) of AvCoV revealed that these strains share a close phylogenetic relationship with the isolates from wild birds in Europe and Asia. The Bangladeshi strains with Eurasian ancestry might pose a significant threat to migratory birds flying through the Asian flyways. They might also

    Keywords: Molecular Epidemiology, Migratory birds, AIV H4N2, AIV H4N6, Avian coronavirus, Phylogenetic origin

    Received: 10 Jun 2024; Accepted: 13 Sep 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Khatun, Tasnim, Hossain, Rahman, Hossain, Chowdhury and Parvin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Rokshana Parvin, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh

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